Woods was selected as the Labour candidate for the 2011 election in the Wigram electorate . She succeeded Jim Anderton , who had announced that he would retire either after winning the Christchurch mayoralty ( he was unsuccessful ) or at the end of the term of the 49th Parliament in November 2011 . Woods was a key member of Anderton 's campaign committee , along with key Progressive Party members like Jeanette Lawrence and Liz Maunsell , and Labour activists such as campaign manager Tony Milne , Ben Ross and Liana Foster . Until the 2010 Canterbury earthquake , Anderton was leading in the opinion polls , and winning the mayoralty would have caused a by-election in the Wigram electorate . The earthquake resulted in a mood swing in Christchurch , and Anderton lost against Bob Parker . Anderton remained an MP until the end of the term of the 49th Parliament , and Woods won in the 2011 general election in the Wigram electorate
2010 Canterbury earthquake
2010 Canterbury earthquake
Megan Woods