One of Smith's big claims to electric fame is that he took ownership of one of the first full EVs in the country back in 2010. He challenged the auto industry to provide one and he told Mission Zero that he paid $84,000 for the new i-MiEV (an acronym for Mitsubishi innovative Electric Vehicle) back when the petrol equivalent cost $26,000, but he's still driving it today (for relatively short distances).

He also has solar on his roof and a hot water heat pump. And in his role with council, he's also pushed for a lot more solar on public buildings to lower electricity costs, improve resilience and reduce emissions.

As he says, Nelson has been ranked the sunniest place in the country 13 out of the past 26 years, so there's a real opportunity to harness that with more solar.

Smith was there to cut the ribbon when Nelson upgraded its bus fleet in 2023. That made it the first primarily electric fleet in the country outside a major urban centre and the decision has been further vindicated after the diesel price spikes this year.

As chair of the Local Government New Zealand group responsible for working on and promoting the Ratepayer Assistance Scheme, Smith has also been instrumental in the policy space. The RAS will allow homeowners to take out long-term, low-interest loans for electric upgrades that are tied to the property.

Councils covering over 75% of the population are now onboard and a number of political parties have come out in support of the scheme ahead of the election. It does require central Government backing, and he's confident it will be passed into law next year.

"In the next 20 years, we're going to see a revolution around the use of electricity."

See all our Political Power episodes here ⚡https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2NZIJNQSg6QhkQc8DIdR9JSn0f0zz6zi

‍