In 2023, aged just 21, Maipi-Clarke beat longtime senior Labour minister Nanaia Mahuta to win the Waikato-Tainui Māori electorate seat, making her New Zealand’s youngest MP in 170 years.
She has 252,000 Instagram followers and 175,000 TikTok fans.
Time said Maipi-Clarke’s award is for “leaders whose work is driving change on equality and justice”.
Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke with the Māori Queen Ngā Wai Hono i t pō at the Waikato-Tainui Māori business awards.
Maipi-Clarke’s indigenous advocacy and theatrics when she ripped up the Treaty Principles Bill in November 2024 in Parliament were noted by the magazine.
After she tore her copy of the bill in half, she led the “Ka Mate” haka and was joined by Te Pāti Māori co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and Labour MP Peeni Henare.
Video of the haka went viral and has been viewed online more than 700 million times.
Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke attends Time 100 Next at Current at Chelsea Piers in New York City. Photo / Michael Loccisano, Getty Images
Former US Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, who was asked by Time to write a tribute to Maipi-Clarke, called the young MP a constant advocate for indigenous rights, who showed courage.
Former US Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland was asked by Time to write a tribute to Maipi-Clarke.
“Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke shook the world when she stood up on New Zealand’s parliament floor in protest last November,” Haaland wrote.
“But it wasn’t just any protest, it was a haka: a traditional Māori dance. The indigenous power and pride in that room brought tears to my eyes and is part of a broader global shift: Indigenous peoples filling spaces that were designed to keep us out and, in some cases, intentionally push us into extinction.
“In 2023, Maipi-Clarke, then 21, became the youngest person elected to the parliament in nearly two centuries. She follows in the footsteps of ancestors who sustained Māori language, traditions, and culture to survive against treacherous odds. Using her platform and voice, she staved off attempts to disenfranchise communities and attack Indigenous rights.
Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke during the Commission Opening of the 54th Parliament, 2023. Photo / Mark Mitchell
“In the grand scheme of things, she represents something that rings true: young people are not just leaders of tomorrow, they are also taking the helm and fighting for the future they deserve. She is a link in the chain of activists who sacrificed for us and inspire us every day.”
Before her haka made international headlines, Maipi-Clarke had already been named the One Young World Politician of the Year, which recognised the world’s most outstanding politicians between the ages of 18 and 35.
Other winners of this year’s Time 100 Next awards were singer-songwriter Tate McRae, Bridgerton actor Jonathan Bailey, businesswoman April Koh, Spanish soccer star Lamine Yamal and Ben Lamm from Colossal Biosciences.
Joseph Los’e joined NZME in 2022 as Kaupapa Māori Editor. Los’e was a chief reporter, news director at the Sunday News covering crime, justice and sport. He was also editor of the NZ Truth and before joining NZME worked for urban Māori organisation Whānau Waipareira.