A Dunedin teenager has won New Zealand's first gold medal of the Rio Paralympics.

Nineteen-year-old Anna Grimaldi claimed victory in the women's long jump this morning.

Her final effort of 5.62m was 3cm ahead of her nearest rival from Cuba.

It's a new record for Grimaldi, 21cm more than her previous personal best.

The student went into the event ranked number two in the world.

Welcome back. Tonight we continue with our interviews of Dunedin mayoral candidates...

And Abe Gray joins me now...

Tonight we continue with our interviews of Dunedin City Council mayoral candidates.

And Athol Bayne joins me now...

And this is where we begin our 2016 local body election coverage.

We're going to kick things off by talking to University of Otago Associate Professor Janine Hayward, who is head of the Department of Politics.