In 1925 Nordmeyer received his ordination as a Presbyterian minister and was appointed to a position in the small town of Kurow.

While in Kurow during the Great Depression, Nordmeyer witnessed firsthand the effects of the economic downturn on the community and people of the town, which lead him to study radical political theory in pursuit of a solution.

At Kurow, Nordmeyer, along with local doctor and future Labour MP Gervan McMillan and school headmaster Andrew Davidson developed ideas of how to apply Christian ethics to politics to solve the miseries of unemployment, poverty and illness – ideas that were later implemented by the First Labour Government of New Zealand.

[4] Shortly before the 1935 election Nordmeyer stepped down from his church position, stating an intent to contest the Oamaru seat for the Labour Party.

Nordmeyer later co-operated with more moderate politicians such as Walter Nash in drafting the party's social security policies.

Eventually the committees recommended a scheme containing a means-tested pension, universal superannuation, and free healthcare for hospital treatments, maternity care and general practitioner consultations all to be financed via direct taxation.

At Nordmeyer's insistence, the health and pensions schemes would be combined into a single measure which later became the Social Security Act 1938.

The New Zealand Branch of the British Medical Association had disagreed with the government on the process of free general practitioner consultations where they refused to accept a state fee for their services.

With this initial hurdle overcome, Nordmeyer progressed with the governments agenda over the next six years introducing further benefits for pharmaceutical prescriptions, dental care, hospital outpatients and X-ray diagnosis.

[9] In the short period between Fraser's death and Nordmeyer's return to Parliament Walter Nash had been hastily elected leader of the Labour Party.

Although Nordmeyer gained considerable backing from certain sectors of the party, Nash enjoyed strong union support and defeated the challenge in caucus on 23 June 1954.

[1] Nordmeyer's idea was that a short sharp corrective budget would fix the economic situation and from then on there would be nothing other than improvement until the next election.

[14] His first test as leader came with a by-election in the normally safe seat of Grey Lynn which Labour managed to retain and slightly increase their majority.

[15] This boosted confidence ahead of the 1963 election where Nordmeyer led Labour to slightly increase its vote share and gain one seat from National.

[16] The memory of the "Black Budget" still haunted Nordmeyer's profile, however, and many within the party believed that it was time for "a new generation" to take control.

This was due to some within the Labour caucus thinking Nordmeyer "out of touch" with his Members and vice versa, some considering him an autocratic loner, despite his considerable debating abilities.

[18] After his defeat Nordmeyer did not wish for a shadow cabinet position and decided to sit on the backbench, but he did offer himself again as a candidate at the 1966 election.

Nordmeyer was the first public figure to be elected president, as earlier union leaders had been full-time insurance workers.

In 1974 he was appointed chairman of the board of the New Zealand Superannuation Corporation which was the controlling organisation for the compulsory pension savings' scheme of the Third Labour Government (led by Kirk).

[2] Nordmeyer was one of the staunchest opponents of capital punishment and was also staunchly opposed to abortion, being a patron of New Zealand's main anti-abortion group Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child (SPUC).