Hon Carmel Sepuloni is a New Zealand Labour Party politician [21][22] who has served as the Member of Parliament for Kelston and held several senior ministerial roles.
Sepuloni attended the University of Auckland, according to a single secondary source [8], and undertook tertiary education [9]. Prior to entering politics, she worked in a number of roles, including as a teacher [7] and literacy teacher [5], according to single secondary sources. She is also reported to have worked as an equity manager at the University of Auckland [4] and as a research project manager in Pacific health at that institution [6], as well as pursuing an academic focus on Pacific health [2], though each of these roles is noted from a single reputable secondary source. She is further reported to have served as chief executive of Vaka Tautua [3][1], a position said to have begun in 2012, according to single secondary sources.
Sepuloni entered Parliament as a list member in 2008 [13], according to a single secondary source. Sources differ on the precise start date of her representation of the Kelston electorate — some place her entry as Member of Parliament for Kelston from 2014 [15], while others give the specific date of 21 September 2014 [15].
She is a member of the New Zealand Labour Party [21][22] and has held the portfolios of Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage [16], Minister for Disability Issues [17], Minister for Social Development and Employment [18][20], and Minister for Social Justice [19], the latter three drawn from single or disputed secondary sources.
Sources differ on the details surrounding her tenure as Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand — some sources place the role from 2023 broadly [11], while others give a start date of 25 January 2023 [11][10]. According to a single secondary source, she is noted as the 20th Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand [10] and, according to another single secondary source, as the first Deputy Prime Minister of Pacific descent [12].