More Māori voters are once again choosing the Māori roll over the general roll, with the latest Electoral Commission figures showing momentum has swung back towards the Māori roll following weeks of campaigning ahead of Thursday’s Māori Electoral Option deadline.
The quarterly statistics, released alongside the Commission’s August 3 enrolment snapshot, show 2,342 voters switched from the general roll to the Māori roll during the latest option period, while 1,637 switched the other way resulting in a net gain of 705.
Newly enrolled voters also overwhelmingly favoured the Māori roll, with 1,778 new enrolments compared with 758 on the general roll.
The figures follow weeks of public campaigning by iwi, Māori organisations, Whānau Ora providers, political parties and community groups alongside online intiatives such as Toiitū te Tiriti and Te Pāti Māori’s nation-wide drive.
While the figures coincide with those campaigns, they cannot on their own establish what impact any individual campaign had on voter behaviour.
Latest Electoral Option (to 3 August)
| Movement | Number |
|---|---|
| General roll → Māori roll | 2,342 |
| Māori roll → General roll | 1,637 |
| Net gain to Māori roll | +705 |
| New Māori roll enrolments | 1,778 |
| New general roll enrolments | 758 |
Overall enrolment picture
The Electoral Commission’s latest snapshot confirms the Māori roll continues to hold a clear lead overall.
| Roll | Enrolled Māori voters |
|---|---|
| Māori roll | 305,124 |
| General roll | 255,900 |
| Total enrolled Māori | 561,024 |
Key takeaways:
- 54.4 percent of enrolled Māori voters are now on the Māori roll.
- 45.6 percent remain on the general roll.
- The Māori roll now has 49,224 more enrolled Māori voters than the general roll.
Rangatahi driving growth
One of the strongest trends emerging from the latest enrolment data is among younger Māori.
The number of Māori aged 18 to 24 enrolled on the Māori roll increased by approximately 2.8 percent over the latest period, bucking an overall national decline in youth enrolment.
This equates to roughly 3,500 additional rangatahi on the Māori roll compared to the previous snapshot, although that figure has not been independently verified by the Electoral Commission.
People aged between 18 and 39 now make up four of the five largest age cohorts on the Māori roll:
| Age group | Māori roll enrolments |
|---|---|
| 30–34 | 36,606 |
| 25–29 | 35,253 |
| 18–24 | 33,867 |
| 35–39 | 33,734 |
| 40–44 | 27,621 |
12-month trend
Despite a brief period earlier this year where switching leaned toward the general roll, the longer-term trajectory remains firmly toward the Māori roll.
| Quarter | General → Māori | Māori → General | Net movement |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Q3 | 1,585 | 382 | +1,203 |
| 2025 Q4 | 6,284 | 1,446 | +4,838 |
| 2026 Q1 | 1,029 | 798 | +231 |
| 2026 Q2 | 4,679 | 5,082 | -403 |
| 2026 Q3 | 2,342 | 1,637 | +705 |
Over the past 12 months, 15,919 Māori voters switched to the Māori roll compared to 9,345 moving to the general roll - a net shift of 6,574 voters. In addition, new enrolments have favoured the Māori roll by more than two to one over the past year (12,422 to 5,631).
Every Māori electorate records gains
All seven Māori electorates recorded a net gain for the Māori roll during the latest period:
- Waiariki recorded the strongest net shift (+171 voters) with 339 voters switching onto the Māori roll and 168 moving off.
- Hauraki-Waikato followed with a net gain of 147 voters, while Te Tai Tokerau recorded a net gain of 124.
- Te Tai Tonga recorded the highest movement, with 400 voters switching onto the Māori roll and 336 moving to the general rolle (net gain of 64).
- Every Māori electorate saw more than 200 new voters enrol directly onto the Māori roll
Political reaction
Te Pāti Māori co-leaders say the figures demonstrate growing confidence in Māori representation.
“I think the bigger picture is that in the last 12 months we’ve seen growth in the Māori roll,” said co-kleader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer., “And I think that is, across all the electorates, a sign that Māori are arriving perfectly sure of where and who they want their voices to be and what they are looking like in Parliament.”
Co-leader Rawiri Waititi added that the figures show a maturing understanding of the influence the Māori roll provides.
“What that tells us is that we’re really maturing in this country’s democracy and our people are now understanding the power that they have on the Māori roll,” Waititi said.
In contrast, New Zealand First deputy leader Shane Jones emphasized that Māori influence is not dependent on being enrolled on the Māori roll.
“I obviously am on the general roll, and I think that there’s a great deal of power and influence that I, as a list member and a member of New Zealand First, can exert to the benefit of Māori, Jones said.
“I just think that far too many of our hapū and iwi are in cahoots to try and scuttle the Government by dreaming up yet more farcical claims to the Waitangi Tribunal.”
What voters need to know
The Māori Electoral Option closes at 11.59pm on Thursday, August 6.
The Electoral Commission says applications submitted online, by email or uploaded through its website must be received by midnight to be accepted.
Paper enrolment forms returned by post can still be accepted if they are postmarked or date-stamped before midnight on August 6, provided they are received by the Commission no later than noon on Tuesday, August 11.
If a paper application is posted before the deadline but is missing a signature or date, the Commission says it can still be treated as having been received on time if the form is completed by the end of Thursday, August 13. The Commission will contact voters in those circumstances.
Completed paper forms can also be handed in at Electoral Commission offices before they close on August 6.
The Commission says the quickest way to switch between the Māori and general rolls is online through vote.nz using a New Zealand driver licence, New Zealand passport or a verified RealMe identity.
People who have already completed a paper form can also return it by emailing enrol@vote.nz or by uploading it through the Electoral Commission website.
The Commission said it was seeing an expected increase in roll changes as the deadline approaches.
