The battle for votes in Te Puke is heating up with incumbent MP Todd McClay and labour candidate Tamati Coffey pledging to produce a strong presence under new electorate boundary changes.

This month the 2014 Representation Commission announced the township and surrounding western area will be transferred from the Bay of Plenty electorate to Rotorua.

Labour candidate Tamati Coffey and Rotorua MP Todd McClay.

And with the 2014 general elections six months away, both incumbent Todd and challenger Tamati sat down with SunLive to outline their campaign intentions, and issues they see facing Te Puke and the wider electorate.

Todd says it is business as usual as he eyes a third successive term in the seat, and believes Te Puke's addition is exciting, and boasts great economic potential within the Bay.

'Kiwifruit is very important to the Bay of Plenty. No one in New Zealand grows kiwifruit as well as we do and no one in the world grows kiwifruit as well as we do here,” says Todd.

'The last four years with PSA have been particularly challenging, but this is a resilient industry they have pulled together.”

Todd is proud to represent the electorate and describes it as a 'vibrant” part of New Zealand. He says Rotorua offers plenty for the Bay of Plenty, as far as forestry and tourism are concerned.

A key illustration of this is the Government's $500million investment towards the Tauranga Eastern Link linking Paengaroa directly to Mount Maunganui and the Port of Tauranga.

'That opens up huge opportunity, not only for Te Puke, but all parts of the Bay of Plenty.”

In his first official visit to the township since being unveiled as Labour's candidate for the Rotorua seat, Tamati says the trip is an educational experience as he continues to build momentum in politics following 10 years in broadcasting.

He says the recent electoral changes still means people are coming to grips with potential candidates and the chance to listen to everyone's concerns and views is crucial to begin with.

'I'm not going to pretend I know Te Puke because I don't. My first job is just to listen and I will be coming to Te Puke every two weeks from now on,” says Tamati.

'It's a mind shift for a lot of the people that live in the Rotorua region, that Te Puke is part of it [the electorate].”

He believes job availability is a major issue for the region, with the recent receivership of Tachikawa Forest Products a big blow, with all 120 workers losing their jobs.

Regional development is also seen as a high priority with attempts to move funding and investment away from the big city centres, like Auckland, and breath life back into the provinces.

With Todd holding a six-year grip on the Rotorua seat, Tamati knows it will be a tough challenge, but one he is looking forward to.

'Todd is a great guy and he has done a lot for the community. Fortuitously he has had an office there for the last five years and has been building up his networks; but I can do better.”