In 1911 Mahuta withdrew his backing for Kaihau in Western Maori after discovering he had presided over the loss of £50,000 of Kīngitanga moneys and used his niece, Te Puea Herangi, to swing support to doctor and former Health Department medical officer Maui Pomare in that year's general election. Pomare won the seat by 565 votes. Te Puea's involvement in campaigning for Mahuta's preferred candidate marked her elevation to a position of chief organiser for the King Movement, a role she held until her death in 1952.