The Governor-General signs every law in New Zealand. So why does almost nobody my age know she exists? I asked to visit and find out.
Here is a thing that took me embarrassingly long to learn: Parliament does not have the final word on a law.
MPs debate a bill. They vote on it. It passes its third reading. And then it goes to the Governor-General, who gives it Royal Assent, and only then is it actually law. That signature is the last step of every single law in this country.
The Governor-General right now is Dame Cindy Kiro. She is the King's representative in New Zealand, she was the first wahine Māori to hold the job, and she works out of Government House in Wellington, which has a ballroom and a garden and, according to the internet, quite a lot of stairs.
So the question I keep chewing on is this. If she signs every law, why did I get to age eleven without anyone telling me the job existed?
I think it is because the role is deliberately quiet. The Governor-General is meant to be above politics. She does not pick sides. She does not announce policies. She opens Parliament, she signs laws, she appoints the Prime Minister after an election, and she does hundreds of things that are about holding the country together rather than winning arguments in it.
Quiet jobs do not make the news. That does not make them small. In a way it makes them bigger, because it means somebody has to be trusted by everyone.
Things I would ask if I got in the door:
Have you ever been asked to sign something you personally disagreed with, and what do you do with that feeling?
What actually happens on the day after an election, when nobody has a majority yet?
Does anyone ever forget to bow, and do you mind?
The letter is sent. Government House gets a huge number of requests, so I am not holding my breath. But you miss every shot you do not take, and the worst anyone can say is no.
Fingers crossed.