This article was first published by RNZ
The government will consider making the Electoral Commission responsible for the administration of local elections, after three districts left Māori ward candidates out of profile booklets.
But Local Government Minister Simon Watts says careful consideration and time will be needed to implement this, due to the nature of such a change.
Local elections have been run by councils for decades, with an Electoral Officer from private companies appointed to each area.
These private companies are responsible for election logistics, including vote processing, candidate information and organising the delivery of voting papers.
An issue was identified when voting packs were released in South Wairarapa, Whanganui, and Ōpōtiki, with Māori ward candidates’ profiles excluded.
Electoral officer Warwick Lampp owned the mistake and despite taking the brunt of the backlash, councils also have a part to play.
“Every council sees and signs off their voting documents back to me as Election Officer, but I have final signoff after the council has checked it,” Lampp said.
The missing profiles, accompanied with an apology, were sent to all Māori roll voters in the affected areas.
Why didn’t all voters get the missing information?
Lampp said if all eligible voters in South Wairarapa received the missing candidate profiles, it would have cost ratepayers $26,000.
“All up, South’s Wairarapa was just on $2500... But it was only 460 people.”
Sending the missing information to every person on Whanganui’s Māori roll cost $12,000, avoiding an estimated $70,000 cost to ratepayers.
Lampp is a part of the private company Electionz.com, which “shouldered” the costs.
The same thing happened in Ōpōtiki, but unlike the other two councils, Ōpōtiki District Council is not required to hold a poll on its Māori Wards.
In 2023, Ōpōtiki District Council voted in favour of Māori wards for the 2025 and 2028 local body elections. so there was no referendum.
There are three Māori ward candidates vying for two seats, yet none were included in the candidate profile handout.
It cost $5697.06 plus GST to print and send out the missing profiles and apology to Māori roll voters.
It would have cost $19,293 to send the additional pages to the areas voters on both the general and Māori rolls.
Like Lampp, Electoral Officer for Ōpōtiki Dale Ofskofske said: “Our mistake, our cost.”
Māori ward candidates were also missing from the Manawatū, Nelson, and Tasman district’s profile booklet, as well as the only mayoral candidate for Manawatū.
But this was no misprint.
It is not a requirement for the profiles of candidates who run unopposed to be included in voting packs as those candidates will automatically get the seat.
Since last year, Local Government NZ (LGNZ) has called for local elections to be run by the Electoral Commission.
LGNZ interim chief executive Scott Necklen said the recent errors could affect the public’s trust in local elections and the upcoming Māori wards referendum.
“While New Zealand’s election services providers do a good job with the resources available, the issues we’ve seen this year reinforce the need for one centralised provider to run local elections to provide consistency for all candidates and voters,” Necklen said.
Chief Electoral Officer Karl Le Quesne said the Electoral Commission’s role in local elections is limited to supporting enrolment and providing electoral roll information to councils.
Changes to the way local elections are run would have significant legislative, institutional and funding implications, he said.
Consideration would need to be given to:
- the benefits of centralisation
- how to maintain local input
- how decisions would be made on electoral systems and voting methods (postal or in-person)
- how elections would be funded under a more centralised model.
“A range of factors contribute to turnout, including voter engagement, media attention, campaign spending, and ease of access to the voting process,” Le Quesne said.
“Changes in administrative or delivery arrangements alone may not make a large or sustainable improvement in participation in the local elections.”
By Emma Andrews of RNZ
