[8][9] Brown was born in Taumarunui, a small town in the King Country of the central North Island of New Zealand.

[3] A lawyer by profession, Brown was a partner at law firm Wynyard Wood, and co-founded the Howick Free Legal Service.

[17] Brown ran on several policies, including; capping rates at the cost of inflation, increasing public transport, and working with youth in the region.

The condition arose from a previously unrecognised congenital heart problem and Brown was admitted to Auckland Hospital.

[21] Brown had successful coronary artery bypass surgery two days later and made a full recovery, returning to mayoral duties after a few months.

[23][24][25] He won the position by a majority of 65,945 votes over main rival candidate, Auckland City mayor John Banks,[1] on 9 October 2010, spending approximately $390,000.

[27] His subsequent explanations for these purchases were also scrutinised at a council meeting, where Brown repeatedly slapped his face and got emotional.

[30] He noted that the event was a fundraiser for a local singer for which the Council bought a table, an explanation later supported by the artist.

[31] As Mayor of Auckland, Brown was an advocate for the proposed City Rail Link,[32] to boost public transport usage.

In response to the low voter turnout (at 34% the lowest ever recorded in Auckland), Brown said the next election should include electronic voting and take place on one day, instead of being spread out over three weeks.

[36] Later in the week, Chuang claimed to have been pressured to go public by a member of mayoral rival John Palino's election team, which she later regretted doing.