The Green Party says its decision to name the people responsible for defacing National Party billboards is a demonstration of real leadership.
Greens co-leader Russel Norman said one of its members, Jolyon White, co-ordinated the attack in which stickers were plastered on hundreds of National Party signs.
Mr White's partner, Anna Heins, has been stood down from her job at Parliament as executive assistant to Dr Norman while Parliamentary Service investigates. Mr White quit the party on Tuesday.
[image:3765:half:right]The former Green MP and current Mana Party candidate, Sue Bradford, criticised the Greens' decision to name Mr White.
She said no activist can afford to associate with an organisation "whose leaders are going to dob them in".
Co-leader Metiria Turei told Morning Report it was a point of principle to the Greens that the party ran clean campaigns.
"We don't play those dirty tricks ... and that's important for members to know that."
She said the response she had received from the party's membership was that the incident had undermined their work in campaigning on the issues.
But Ms Turei didn't expect the party would lose public support because of it.
Dr Norman said on Tuesday he had no advance knowledge of the vandalism and as far as he was aware no Green Party funds or networks were involved.
