Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

What a pointless exercise the Tauranga by-election was and what a waste of taxpayers' money.National is keeping the seat, hardly a surprise.But the turnout was awful.40 percent, about 20,000 votes cast and cost the taxpayer - roughly $50 a vote according to the Electoral Commission's figure of about a million to run a by-election.Of course, we wouldn't have needed to go through that whole process if Simon Bridges had been a list MP, just ring up the next person on the party list.And maybe, maybe that could work in constituencies too, given we have a general election every three years.Do we really need to go through all that process just to find someone for the seat for say, half a term?Here are some of the characters who've snuck into Parliament in by-elections the last few years:David Shearer, Kris Faafoi, Jami-Lee Ross that name alone shows you what a shonky process it is. Poto Williams, Winston, the Prime Minister and a few others.Now, if we just left it to the party of the outgoing MP to pick a successor,