Her pre-children profession was as a Credit Controller. For the next 15 years, prior to entering Parliament, Martin was a stay at home parent and was very active in the Warkworth community. She spent a significant amount of time on parent-based fundraising and volunteer committees for Mahurangi Kindergarten, Warkworth Primary School and Mahurangi College. In her own time, outside of Parliament, Martin served as the Chair of the Board of Trustees at Mahurangi College for over a decade before resigning when she became the Associate Minister for Education in 2018.
Martin was first elected to the New Zealand House of Representatives during the 2011 general election and was subsequently appointed as deputy leader of New Zealand First. She was first elected to Parliament as a New Zealand First list MP based in Warkworth, in 2011. Along with all other New Zealand First MPs, Martin voted against the Marriage Amendment Act, which permits same-sex marriage in New Zealand, in 2013. New Zealand First requested that the bill become a referendum issue however the request was denied. On 3 July 2015 it was announced that Martin had been replaced as deputy leader following a caucus vote and replaced by Ron Mark. In 2015 Martin sponsored the Social Security Amendment Bill. The bill gave unsupported child or orphan clothing allowance parity with foster children. She has also been a strong advocate for the expansion of this allowance so that it can be accessed by kin carers. During the, Martin was re-elected on the New Zealand First party list. The party won 7.2 percent of the vote and nine seats.
Following the formation of a Labour-NZ First coalition government, Martin was as appointed Minister for Children, Minister of Internal Affairs, Minister for Seniors, and Associate Minister of Education. Martin has also been NZ First spokesperson for broadcasting, communications and IT, education and women's affairs. Following an attempted "uplifting" by Oranga Tamarikisocial workers of a child in Hastings in June 2019, the Minister for Children Martin met with local iwi Ngāti Kahungunu and the Māori Council. She also announced that the Government would be conducting a review into the Hawkes Bay attempted uplifting incident. In early August 2019, Martin announced that the Government would be scrapping its Children's Teams task forces in response to the uplifting controversy but rejected comparisons with the Australian "Stolen Generations". According to media reports, Martin participated in several months of negotiations with the Labour Party over the Government's proposed Abortion Legislation Bill, which seeks to remove abortion from the Crimes Act 1961. Despite initially ruling out a referendum, NZ First leader Winston Peters surprised both Martin and Labour by demanding a binding referendum on abortion reform in return for supporting the legislation through Parliament. Peter's actions were criticised by both the Minister of JusticeAndrew Little, who initiated the legislation, opposition National MP Amy Adams, and left-wing blogger Martyn "Bomber" Bradbury. Martin voted in favour of the Government's abortion legislation bill, which passed its first reading on 8 August 2019. On 14 March 2020, it was reported that Martin was self-isolating and being tested for the COVID-19 virus after meeting with Australian Home Affairs MinisterPeter Dutton, who had tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, during a Five Eyes ministerial meeting in Washington, D.C. the previous week.
Personal life
Martin and her husband have three children. Martin has described her mother as the New Zealander that she most admires as a brave woman who has not been afraid to stand up for her belief and opinions. Martin's grandfather was a guard at the Featherston prisoner of war camp during the Featherston Incident in 1943. His gun was taken by another member of staff who shot an interpreter at the camp by the name of Adachi. This incident started a riot in which 48 Japanese prisoners of war and one New Zealand guard died. Martin has taken a pro-choice stance on abortion, supporting efforts to remove it from the Crimes Act 1961. Martin's views on abortion was affected by the death of her grandmother Beverley Williams during a backstreet abortion.
