And that's a wrap for our live local election 2025 blog tonight. You can read the blog below to see the Waikato and Bay of Plenty election result updates as they happened, but here are the highlights:

• Based on progress results, all Bay of Plenty mayors have been re-elected. 
• They include Tania Tapsell in Rotorua, and James Denyer in Western Bay of Plenty, as well as the three Eastern Bay mayors - although Whakatāne's Victor Luca is in a tight race with former Green Party MP Nándor Tánczos.
• In Waikato, Hamilton City has a new mayor in Tim Macindoe.   
• There have been several upsets in mayoral races around the Waikato districts. Progress results have incumbents trailing challengers in Waikato District, Taupō, Thames-Coromandel, Waipa and Matamata-Piako. Ōtorohanga also has a new mayor, while South Waikato re-elected Gary Petley.
• The Bay of Plenty and Waikato regional council tables also look set to have some new faces, as some long-standing councillors miss out. 
• And in Rotorua, re-elected Māori ward councillor Trevor Maxwell will take the outright record of New Zealand's longest-serving councillor.
• In Māori Ward referendums, Western Bay of Plenty, Taupō, Thames, Hauraki, Matamata-Piako and Ōtorohanga voted to remove their wards. Hamilton, Rotorua, Kawerau and Whakatāne voted to keep their wards. 
• Preliminary results, which will include Saturday's votes, are expected tomorrow, and final results - including special votes - later next week.

From the Bay of Plenty Times, SunLive, Rotorua Daily Post and Waikato Herald newsrooms, thanks for joining us.

A 19-year-old candidate for Waikato’s district council, who was subject to allegations of election tampering referred to police, appears to have fought off any negative publicity for a slim election win tonight.

In September, it was alleged that student Fabio Rodrigues had been handing out voting papers to those visiting their Post Office boxes inside the GAS Pōkeno, where he works, and encouraging people to vote for him.

It wasn’t the only controversy of Rodrigues’ campaign who was also allegedly head-butted by the husband of a rival candidate.

But it seems Rodrigues has come through the controversy to secure one of the two seats in Waikato District Council’s Tuakau-Pōkeno general ward.

Rodrigues sits second with 954 votes as Vern Reeve leads the way with 1052 votes.

Third in votes is Stephanie Henderson with 833. These results reflect 90% of counted votes.

It was also alleged during the campaign that Rodrigues put his own flyers into the PO boxes while placing mail in them on behalf of NZ Post.

Election Services, which oversees the Waikato District Council election, said it had forwarded the allegations against Rodrigues to police.

Police declined to comment, citing privacy concerns.

Rodrigues categorically denied the allegations, claiming they were a part of a “smear campaign” against him.

He confirmed he handled mail as part of his role, but denied using his position for any wrongdoing.

“We can have disagreements, but we don’t have to ruin people’s livelihoods like what is happening.

“I really don’t care what my other opponents think, right? I care what the people think. I care what my voters think and the people who are struggling ... that’s what I’m worried about.”

With the majority of votes counted, it is looking certain that Kawerau District Council will be retaining both its Māori wards and its current mayor in the local election.

Progress results, which include all votes received as of Friday night, show that in the Māori ward referendum, 1247 have voted to keep Māori wards and just 592 have voted not to keep them.

Current mayor Faylene Tunui has received a clear majority of votes with 1336 compared to Carolyn Ion’s 547.

It appears that Ion will not be returning as councillor either as the two vacancies on the Kawerau district at large she also stood for have current councillors Sela Kingi, with 1120 votes and Berice Julian, with 1079 votes comfortably ahead of her 899.

The three Kawerau general ward seats have Justin Ross (896) Anthony Worsley (716) and Tracy Hill (524) well ahead of Mel Drummond (245).

The three new Māori ward seats have the closest competition, though Waikite Apiata has taken a clear lead with 529 votes.

Gloria Te Paki Leokava-Taani (391) also looks safe, but only 20 votes separate Mal Dowie (352) and Lyzette Howard (322).

Final results are expected to be released by Thursday.

- By LDR reporter Diane McCarthy

Waikato District mayoral frontrunner Aksel Bech said he is pleased by the progress results, after a previous unsuccessful tilt at the role

"There were some learnings from the last time," he told the Waikato Herald.

Bech replaces Jacqui Church as mayor, receiving more than twice her vote tally so far.

He plans to tackle the affordability crisis that was raised with him on the campaign trail and to ensure rates are kept under control.

"It is not easily done."

Empowering the community to play a part in local democracy would be front and center, along with ensuring the new water organisation was able to "stand up", he said.

He is celebrating the win with his wife and daughters.

Bech said while he was entering a politically divisive climate as mayor, he wanted to work with all members of his community.

"They are passionate about their community."

Bech also wanted to thank his supporters and everyone who helped him during the campaign.

Preliminary results show significant change at the Waikato Regional Council, with three new councillors elected and seven successful candidates running on the Rates Control ticket.

The early count includes almost all votes, though special votes and ballots delivered to council offices today are still to be tallied.

Official results are due between October 16 and 19.

Two councillors were returned unopposed in the Māori constituencies: Kataraina Hodge for Ngā Tai ki Uta and Tipa Mahuta for Ngā Hau e Whā.

Departing chair Pamela Storey has not been re-elected based on preliminary results. Deputy chair Bruce Clarkson and councillor Clyde Graf also missed out.

Chief executive Chris McLay thanked the outgoing councillors for their service, saying Storey had “led the council through a time of significant central government reform and worked hard for the region".

He said the new council faced real challenges ahead, including the impacts of legislative reform and cost-of-living pressures, but would work with partners, stakeholders and communities “to make the Waikato region even better.”

In the Hamilton general constituency, Angela Strange, Chris Hughes, Jennifer Nickel and Ben Dunbar-Smith have been elected. 

Mich’eal Downard has taken the Taupō-Rotorua seat, and Warren Maher leads in Thames-Coromandel.

Robert Cookson and Keith Holmes are ahead in the Waihou constituency, while Gary McGuire and Noel Smith have been elected in Waikato. 

In Waipā-King Country, Garry Reymer and Stu Kneebone top the preliminary count.

Western Bay of Plenty, Taupō, Thames, Hauraki, Matamata-Piako and Ōtorohanga have voted to remove their wards, based on the provisional results.

Hamilton, Rotorua, Kawerau and Whakatāne have voted to keep their wards.

Newcomers Raj Kumar and Anna Grayling will be the Rotorua Constituency councillors on the Bay of Plenty Regional Council,  ousting long-serving councillor Lyall Thurston.

Allan Iwi Te Whau is the new Ōkūrei Māori constituency councillor.

For the Eastern Bay of Plenty Constituency, the councillors are Malcolm Campbell and Sarah Van der Boom. 

Mawera Karetai is the new Kōhi Māori Constituency for the area.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council progress results are in and there is a mix of new and familiar faces.

Former Western Bay of Plenty deputy mayor John Scrimgeour has been elected to the Western Bay constituency alongside current regional councillor Ken Shirley.

Current councillor Stuart Crosby is joined by Tim Maltby, Kate Graeme and Glenn Dougal in the Tauranga Constituency.

Two current councillors are in a tight race for the final Tauranga spot - Andrew von Dadelszen has a five-vote lead over Kat Macmillan, so this result may change.

Matemoana McDonald has been re-elected to the Mauao Māori Constituency.

Trevor Maxwell has become New Zealand’s longest-ever serving councillor, after being re-elected to Rotorua’s Māori ward.

That will take him to 51 years of service by the end of his term.

“I'm quite proud and very, very honoured,” he told the Rotorua Daily Post at the playground near his Ohinemutu home this afternoon. 

The councillor, who is in his late 70s, posed for photographs on a swing. 

He said he was also pleased that Rotorua had voted to keep Māori wards.

“That is also a wonderful thing for us here, because it could easily have gone the other way.”

Former MP Tim Macindoe has been confirmed as Hamilton's new mayor.

Macindoe said he recieved a call from council chief executive Lance Vervoort with the news.

He says he is "absolutely elated and very honoured" by the result.