Karen Chhour

Karen Louise Chhour^[2] (born 1980/1981) is a New Zealand politician who was elected to the New Zealand parliament at the 2020 general election as a representative of the ACT New Zealand party.

Early life and career[]

Chhour was born in Australia and moved to New Zealand as a baby, first living with her grandparents in Kaeo before moving back in with her mother on the North Shore at the age of 5.^[3][4] She regularly ran away from home and ended up in foster care, which she states as a reason for her interest in addressing homelessness and child poverty. She worked in property management prior to becoming involved in politics.^[5][6][7]

Political career[]

In the 2020 general election, Chhour was placed seventh on the ACT party list and ran for the electorate of Upper Harbour.^[5] Chhour came fourth in Upper Harbour.^[8] However, ACT won 8% of the party vote, which entitled it to 10 MPs including Chhour.^[9][10] Chhour is ACT's spokesperson for Social Development, Children, and Child Poverty Reduction.^[11]

In early December 2021, Chhour in her capacity as ACT's health spokesperson criticised the Labour Government's plans to introduce legislation under its programme that would ban anyone under the age of 14 from legally purchasing tobacco for the rest of their lives. Older generations will only be permitted to buy tobacco products with very low-levels of nicotine while fewer shops will be allowed to sell tobacco products. Chhour argued that prohibition was unworkable and that the new law would create a black market for tobacco products.^[12]

Personal life[]

Chhour lives on the North Shore. She met her husband Menglin, a Cambodian refugee, in intermediate school. They lost touch when she moved schools, but reconnected when she was 16, working at McDonald's after dropping out of high school. They have four children together.^{[3][4][5][6][13]}

In 2020, Chhour reconnected with her long-lost Australian father and discovered she has two sisters.^[4]

References[]