Davidson served on the city council from 2016 to 2022, during which time he chaired the urban development and transport committee and played a significant role in the development of Christchurch’s cycleway network.
The two-term Papanui Ward councillor, who is the son of the late Rob Davidson, lost his seat in last year’s local body election to Victoria Henstock.
Rob, who was married to former mayor Lianne Dalziel, unsuccessfully ran for the city council 12 years ago. The well-known lawyer passed away in 2020, aged 69, after a battle with cancer.
Said Davidson: “It’s an absolute honour to have been selected to represent the Green Party in Ilam.
“The Green Party has had a strong history in Ilam and I’m looking forward to building on this.”
Davidson emphasised the importance of making urban centres easy for people to navigate without using their cars.
“Over 80 per cent of our population live in urban centres, so we need our urban environment to be people-friendly, green and resilient to the impacts of climate change.
“Where it’s easy to walk, bike or take the bus; where our housing is warm, dry and more affordable; where our neighbourhoods are leafy and our rivers clean,” said Davidson.
The Ilam electorate was a National stronghold from its establishment in 1996 until 2020, when National MP Gerry Brownlee lost the seat to Labour’s Sarah Pallett.
Davidson will run against Pallett and Dr Hamish Campbell, a medical researcher, who was selected as National’s candidate for Ilam in the October 14 general election.
