Sapna Samant is the Green Party's candidate for Maungakiekie. Photo: Supplied
Sapna Samant, the Green Party's Indian-origin candidate for Maungakiekie, has found herself embroiled in controversy stemming from her social media past.
Tova O'Brien, Stuff's chief political correspondent, asked Greens co-leader James Shaw about several of Samant's posts on social media in a podcast episode that was published Thursday.
"White people are stupid," Samant wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that was published in September 2019.
She has also described electorate rival Priyanca Radhakrishnan, the incumbent Labour MP for Maungakiekie, in a number of unflattering ways.
In 2019, she labeled Radhakrishnan as being "disconnected w/no work record".
Maungakiekie candidate Priyanca Radhakrishnan. Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver
In a post published in 2020, Samant wrote: "Priyanca is the incumbent. We know how useless she is. A child that will cry at the slightest."
In 2020, she called the minister "f...ing useless"
More recently, in 2022, she said Radhakrishnan was "(an incompetent) minister".
Shaw told O'Brien he was unaware of Samant's social media history.
When asked whether Samant was a suitable candidate for the Greens, Shaw replied, "based on what you're saying, it does not sound like it."
A spokesperson for the Green Party said the party's co-leaders have since discussed the matter with Samant and, as a result, the controversial posts have been deleted.
"The tweets have been removed, and there's nothing more to add at this stage," the spokesperson said.
Samant has since protected her posts on X so that only approved followers can access them.
Radhakrishnan declined to comment on the social media posts, saying the content speaks for itself.
Samant is ranked 28 on the party list and is a first-time candidate.
RNZ has approached Samant for comment.