A record number of Māori are now enrolled to vote, but around three in 10 enrolled Māori voters didn’t vote in the 2023 General Election.
In 2023, around 144,000 Māori aged 18 to 29 were enrolled to vote, but according to Electoral Commission statistics, nearly one in three didn’t turn out.
Māori lawyer and social media advocate Riana Te Ngahue says there are a range of barriers, from a lack of understanding about politics to practical challenges such as transport.
“I ētahi wā, ka pōhēhē te tangata kāore he take ki te tuku pōti, nā reira he moumou wā. I ētahi wā, ka rangirua pea ētahi tāngata – ka mōhio me tuku pōti ahau, engari kāore i te māia ki te tuku i tētahi ara,” she says.
“Ki ētahi ka noho tawhiti, ko ētahi kāore e taea te taraiwa. Ko ētahi kāore i te whakapono ki te pūnaha katoa.”
Anaru Marshall, Tumu Whakarae of Te Kāhui Maru Trust, says the same issue was evident in recent local body elections.
“It wasn’t necessarily that [Māori wards] were voted out, it was that we didn’t turn up and vote for them.”
More than half of the Māori population are under 30, making rangatahi a significant part of the Māori voting population.
He tūhono i ngā iwi mā te aka kūmara
Ngā Iwi o Taranaki are now among those trying different approaches to close the gap between enrolment and turnout.
Their new initiative, The Landline, uses social media alongside face-to-face engagement to encourage whānau to vote this year.
“A key feature of the campaign is Te Aka Kāmura, reflecting how kōrero travels through whānau communities and throughout the motu,” Marshall says.
“The connection through whānau and whenua, and how whānau get to have a say about what happens on and to the whenua.”
Marshall says the strategy was shaped by rangatahi from the eight iwi of Taranaki, who wanted to hear messaging from their own reanga.
“This theme was inspired by our rangatahi. Basically, they told us, ‘Keep it light, keep it fun and relatable,’ and they wanted to see messaging that was delivered by people their own age, on the platforms that they head on to,” Marshall says.
The campaign features well-known Māori including musician Stan Walker, Māori AI founder Dan Te Whenua Walker, comedian Joe Daymond and Te Ngahue.
He rautaki anō hei whakaratarata i te marea
The Landline is not the first campaign to try a more modern approach.
Tania Waikato’s recent Bikini Baddies campaign was reported to have driven more than 3,000 people to Vote.nz to enrol, check their details or switch to the Māori Roll.
“Ko tētahi mea pai ki ahau o te mea Bikini Baddies he mea ngahau – mō te hunga rangatahi me te marea me ngahau, me hiahia tātou ki te tuku pōti i te mea kei te whakapono ki tētahi ara.”
Me rēhita, me pōti anō hoki
Marshall says iwi will also be on the ground, ensuring whānau are informed and supported ahead of the election.
“We’ll also be calling our uri to use our registers. There’ll be door-to-door visits in Taranaki. Some of our people don’t have access to transport, so we’ll be able to provide transport.”
With around 54 per cent of enrolled Māori voters now choosing the Māori Roll, the highest proportion on record, the focus is now on getting those enrolled to actually turn up and vote.
The deadline to enrol is 25 October, ahead of Election Day on 7 November.
