Why does nz have elections

Voting opens around 2 weeks before election day. However, voters have until 7pm on election day to vote. Everyone who is enrolled to vote gets two votes: an electorate vote and a party vote.

The electorate vote is for the candidate you want to represent the area you live in your electorate. The party vote is for the party you want to represent you. On election night we publish the preliminary results for each party and electorate candidate. The preliminary results give an early idea of how parties and candidates are doing before the final count is complete.

The chief electoral officer declares the official results weeks after voting closes. The count process is very thorough and takes time to complete.

How are votes counted? If a Judge approves a recount application, the official recount process begins. We declare the results once the recount is complete. Election recounts and petitions. When the official count is final, the chief electoral officer returns the writ with the names of the winning candidates. The remaining seats are filled from party lists according to the share of the party vote each party got.

The political party or group of parties with the most seats becomes the government. From the Stories A-Z tab choose the letter V. Then select Voting rights. From the Stories A-Z tab choose the letter E. Go down to Electoral systems and you will find some details about the different systems over the years. Also look at Elections and campaigns.

Tips: As well as the information in these articles, remember to look at the External links and sources. You will find a list of additional resources in both electronic and print formats.

Use the Politics and government link and have a look at the headings under Political milestones. Have a look at Women and the vote and Maori and the vote to find out about the history of these groups in New Zealand elections. You can tell because of their web address — they have either.

DigitalNZ This comprehensive site has a good range of New Zealand content, brought together from a number of official sources and dating back to Use the keywords ' electoral system New Zealand' to find sources of information such as audio, video and images. You will find the tabs for these at the top of the page after doing your search. Elections today Under current New Zealand law, everyone who is a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident and is aged 18 or over is able to vote.

Electoral Commission This website is the official government site for New Zealand's general or parliamentary elections.

Select Elections in NZ to find out about What happens in a general election. Also find information about What is a referendum? Also find information about What is MMP? Tips: Some websites have. This can tell you which country this website comes from eg. You can check the About us link on the website for more information. New Zealand Parliament As the official website of the New Zealand Parliament, here you can find a number of reliable and detailed fact sheets. Go to the tab Visit and Learn.

Then go to How Parliament works and then Fact sheets. Parliament Brief: Parliament and the general election outlines the election process , who runs the country when Parliament is dissolved and what happens up to the opening of the new parliament. This has lots of articles about things like electorates, the MMP voting system, and referendums. Local Government New Zealand This a good resource to use to check out the local level of government.

Select Local Government in New Zealand. Find information about how local government and councils work. Also find information about previous local elections. Political parties There are a number of different political parties that are active in New Zealand, but this hasn't always been the case. Go to Government and Nation and then Political Participation. Select Political parties. This covers the original 2 party system and right up to the present day when a number of smaller parties are able to gain seats and potentially join with a bigger party to form a government.

Tips: Many web pages have links to further information or to other recommended sites. Following these links is a great way to find out more. Official websites Each of the political parties has its own website, and these are the resources to use to find out about their official policies and political campaigns.

Election news, issues and results During the months leading up to an election there is often lots of news and reporting in the media. This particular database has lots of magazines and newspapers from Australia and New Zealand. Electorate populations, populations enrolled to vote, and party votes cast, Improving voter turn-out would help reduce the difference in voting power between electorates and different ethnic groups in New Zealand.

Currently, promotional campaigns encourage people to enrol and vote. Another possible approach to improving voter turn-out is to make voting compulsory — like in Australia. In the past, not all New Zealanders over 18 have had an equal right to vote, with groups achieving suffrage at different times. In future, if there are calls for further changes to the voting system in New Zealand, these would also have to be approved by legislation.

In the meantime, the most important thing is that everyone who can vote, does vote. Have a say in a fair future.

View more on how to contact us or use this form to send us an email. Explore as a Researcher Student or Teacher Member of public. Who we are. Share our content. Voting and fairness. The following information explores three main areas of our electoral system: Who can vote? Who does vote? How does voter power differ by electorate? Since , New Zealanders vote under an MMP Mixed Member Proportional system, which consists of two votes : A party vote for the political party you want to be in government.

An electorate vote for the candidate you would like to be the Member of Parliament for the area you live in. Referendums Some elections include referendums.

Find out about how to enrol and vote at vote. Citizens or permanent residents of New Zealand aged 18 years or over can vote. New Zealand populations under age 18 Figure 1. Plastics in the Environment Understanding Aotearoa's plastics problem.