Meka Whaitiri will stand down from the Labour Party and run as a candidate for Te Pāti Māori at the next election, 1News understands.
It's understood she will run again in Māori seat Ikaroa-Rāwhiti, the seat she currently holds for Labour.
Whaitiri was made a minister in 2017, holding the Customs Minister role, before she was stood down following allegations she had assaulted a staffer.
An investigation into Whaitiri led then-Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to lose confidence in Whaitiri as a minister and sacked her from the role.
Whaitiri regained the Customs Minister role in 2020 and added Food Safety last year.
Whaitiri has held the Ikaroa-Rāwhiti seat since winning it in the by-election triggered by the death of Labour MP Parekura Horomia in 2013.
The seat - which runs much of the length of the east coast of the North Island - has been held by Labour since its establishment in 1999, with Te Pāti Māori candidates coming second in five of its seven general elections.
Green MPs Marama Davidson and Elizabeth Kerekere have both previously run in the seat.
In the 2020 election, Whaitiri commanded a more than 6000 vote majority against Te Pāti Māori candidate Heather Te Au-Skipworth.
In that election, the Labour Party attracted more than 66% of the party vote in the seat, and Te Pāti Māori almost 12%.
Te Au-Skipworth is still listed as Te Pāti Māori’s Ikaroa-Rāwhiti candidate on its website, her candidacy having been announced by the party in late 2022.
This evening, National Party MP Chris Bishop tweeted about reports of Whaitiri’s defection, saying: "Wow. Labour falling apart".
In a statement this evening, a spokesperson for Acting Prime Minister Carmel Sepuloni said, "We’re aware of the media speculation. We have nothing further to add at this point."
Whaitiri is expected to make a formal announcement tomorrow at Waipatu Marae in Hastings.
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