Upon his discharge from the army he became active in his local branch of the Labour Party and was on the party campaign committee in the electorate in both the 1946 and 1949 elections. He was invited to be Labour's candidate in Rodney at the 1951 election but declined, citing family responsibilities. He was likewise offered the candidacy in 1954 but again refused as he was preparing to leave the electorate and was already in the process of selling his farm.