Henare Kaihau (1854/1860? – 20 May 1920) was a New Zealand Māori politician, serving as Member of the House of Representatives for the Western Maori electorate.
His birth year is uncertain. The Dictionary of New Zealand Biography gives a range from 1854 to 1860, whereas Wilson gives 1855.[1]
He unsuccessfully contested the Western Maori electorate in the . Of eight candidates, he came fifth with 9.7% of the vote.[2] In the, he came third out of five candidates.[3] [4] In the 1896 election, he defeated Ropata Te Ao,[5] and he held the Western Maori electorate to 1911 when he was defeated by Māui Pōmare.
Wilson notes him as a Reform Party supporter. Kaihau does, however, appear on a poster of the Liberal Party in 1910.[6] The New Zealand Herald, in its reporting, also lists him as a government supporter, i.e. a Liberal.[7] Those newspapers that listed political affiliation for Maori candidates for the, The Star (Christchurch) and The Tuapeka Times, also show him as a supporter of the Ward Ministry.[8] [9]