Ron Mark
Encyclopedia
Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

 Ron Stanley Mark (1954–) is a New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 politician, and is the current mayor of Carterton
Carterton, New Zealand
Carterton is a small town in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and the seat of the Carterton District. It lies in a farming area of the Wairarapa in New Zealand's North Island. It is located southwest of Masterton and northeast of Wellington...

, Wairarapa, New Zealand.

Early years

Before entering politics, Mark served in the New Zealand Army
New Zealand Army
The New Zealand Army , is the land component of the New Zealand Defence Force and comprises around 4,500 Regular Force personnel, 2,000 Territorial Force personnel and 500 civilians. Formerly the New Zealand Military Forces, the current name was adopted around 1946...

 and in both the Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces
Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces
The Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces are the Royal Army of Oman , Royal Navy of Oman, Royal Air Force of Oman and other defence forces of the Sultanate of Oman...

 and the Sultan of Oman's Special Forces.

Member of Parliament

In the 1993 election
New Zealand general election, 1993
The 1993 New Zealand general election was held on 6 November 1993 to determine the composition of the 44th New Zealand Parliament. It saw the governing National Party, led by Jim Bolger, win a second term in office, despite a major swing back towards the Labour Party. The new Alliance and New...

 he was the Labour
New Zealand Labour Party
The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....

 candidate for the Selwyn electorate
Selwyn (New Zealand electorate)
Selwyn is the name of three seats in the New Zealand House of Representatives, based around towns on the outskirts of Christchurch city. In an historical sense, the name refers to an electorate that existed between 1866 and 1919...

. He was later involved in the discussions about the formation of the New Zealand Democratic Coalition
New Zealand Democratic Coalition
The New Zealand Democratic Coalition was a proposed moderate political party intended to contest the 1996 General Election. It would have been led by former Prime Minister Mike Moore and was intended to capture the balance of power on election night...

. When these failed he joined New Zealand First
New Zealand First
New Zealand First is a political party in New Zealand that was founded in 1993, following party founder Winston Peters' resignation from the National Party in 1992...

.

He is a member of the New Zealand First
New Zealand First
New Zealand First is a political party in New Zealand that was founded in 1993, following party founder Winston Peters' resignation from the National Party in 1992...

 party. He has been a list MP from the 1996 elections
New Zealand general election, 1996
The 1996 New Zealand general election was held on 12 October 1996 to determine the composition of the 45th New Zealand Parliament. It was notable for being the first election to be held under the new Mixed Member Proportional electoral system, and produced a parliament considerably more diverse...

 until his party's failure to retain any seats in the 2008 elections
New Zealand general election, 2008
The 2008 New Zealand general election was held on 8 November 2008 to determine the composition of the 49th New Zealand parliament. The conservative National Party, headed by its Parliamentary leader John Key, won a plurality of votes and seats, ending 9 years of government dominated by the social...

. During the (1996-98) coalition between New Zealand First and the National Party
New Zealand National Party
The New Zealand National Party is the largest party in the New Zealand House of Representatives and in November 2008 formed a minority government with support from three minor parties.-Policies:...

, he was the government's Senior Whip
Whip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...

.

Controversy

The New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 television channel TV3
TV3 (New Zealand)
TV3 is a New Zealand commercial television network, owned by MediaWorks New Zealand. Launched on 26 November 1989, the first private television network in New Zealand...

 was banned for 3 days from filming in Parliament in August 2006 for showing Mark repeatedly pulling his middle finger to another MP. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10398444

Leaving New Zealand First

In 2009, Mark told media that while he still had a subscription with New Zealand First
New Zealand First
New Zealand First is a political party in New Zealand that was founded in 1993, following party founder Winston Peters' resignation from the National Party in 1992...

, he was "not active". Mark may stand for Parliament
Parliament of New Zealand
The Parliament of New Zealand consists of the Queen of New Zealand and the New Zealand House of Representatives and, until 1951, the New Zealand Legislative Council. The House of Representatives is often referred to as "Parliament".The House of Representatives usually consists of 120 Members of...

 with another party, however.

In 2010 he was elected Mayor of Carterton
Carterton, New Zealand
Carterton is a small town in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and the seat of the Carterton District. It lies in a farming area of the Wairarapa in New Zealand's North Island. It is located southwest of Masterton and northeast of Wellington...

 in the Wairarapa
Wairarapa
Wairarapa is a geographical region of New Zealand. It occupies the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service towns, with Masterton being the largest...

.

Personal life

Formerly married to Gail Mark, née Berry, he has five children and seven grandchildren.
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