Lawrence Yule


Lawrence Arden Yule is a New Zealand politician who was Mayor of Hastings from 2001 to 2017. He was elected to represent the Tukituki electorate as its member of parliament in the 2017 general election.

Political career

Mayor of Hastings

Yule has been mayor of Hastings since 2001. In this role he presides over the Hastings District Council. When elected he was the youngest person to become mayor of Hastings.
In 2016, the Hastings district was hit by an outbreak of campylobacter in drinking water which affected thousands of people.
In the most recent election in 2016, Yule received more than 3,000 more votes than his closest rival. Yule announced that his sixth term, starting in 2016, would be his last as mayor.

National politics

Yule was the National Party's candidate for the electorate of Tukituki in the 2017 general election; his candidacy was confirmed on 22 February 2017. The seat had been held by National MP Craig Foss since 2005, but Foss announced his retirement from politics in December 2016. Yule defeated the Labour Party's Anna Lorck, who Yule had hired as a public relations consultant during previous local election campaigns. Yule resigned as Hastings Mayor, resulting in a by-election held in November 2017.

Other roles

Yule was the president of Local Government New Zealand. He is also a Justice of the peace.

Personal life

Yule is married to his wife Kerryn. They have four adult children.