Barber and Eru Kapa-Kingi at election event
(Photo/Supplied)
Despite the voter
suppression tactics of the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition
Government who ended same day enrolment, people across the
country came together to make sure their communities were
enrolled and will have their voices heard this
election.
By the deadline for enrolment on 25 October,
provisional numbers released show 93.6% voters have
enrolled. That is 1% below levels of people enrolled on
Election Day 2023. Overseas voter enrolment has seen a 60%
rise from this time last election. “Despite the government
changing the rules, together our communities busted their
guts to overcome the worst effects of the voter suppression
laws,” says Kassie Hartendorp (Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti
Tūwharetoa), Director of ActionStation.
“While we
didn’t quite reach enrolment levels of 2023 election, even
the Electoral Commission said today that community groups
stepping up was critical to getting thousands more people
enrolled before the deadline,” says
Hartendorp
“The Coalition Government tried to
justify these changes, saying it would make the vote count
quicker, but evidence from the Electoral Commission
contradicted this. It’s clear this was about the
government wanting to consolidate their power through
suppressing the votes of people most materially impacted by
their policies, who are unlikely to vote for them,” says
Hartendorp.
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ActionStation has been running a
get-out-the-vote campaign encouraging voter enrolments. Over
2,000 people attended training and events to learn how to
increase enrolment in their communities which they say help
seed enrolment events across the country and
internationally.
New Zealanders living in Naarm
Melbourne, Raven Maeder and Tayla Wong Lithgow have been
running events and using WhatsApp groups to make sure people
enrol and vote in this election.
Maeder says “The
common sentiment among the young New Zealanders we’ve
talked to here is that we care deeply about Aotearoa and a
lot of us want to come home. But we need Aotearoa to be
somewhere we can afford to live and where our skills and
voices will be valued. We want a government that will
protect what is precious about home: our communities, te
Taiao and te Tiriti o Waitangi,” says Maeder.
“We
knew from the beginning that what it would take to beat
voter suppression was relationships – people following up
with each other in their communities. Now we are calling on
people to do exactly the same thing to get people to the
voting booths,” says Hartendorp.
Hartendorp says
it’s already working. “Despite the millions of dollars
and misleading information being poured into the election
campaigns of the current Government parties, people know
their lives have got much harder under this Government and
we can already see the hard work of everyday people to get
their communities voting in the high advanced voting
numbers.”
Notes:
Enrolment statistics
sourced from Electoral Commission.
More comments and
detail from community enrolment efforts below, corresponding
images attached:
Some of the people who have been
participating in enrolment and get-out-the-vote activities
this year have been New Zealanders living overseas. Raven
and Taylor who live in Naarm Melbourne are amongst those who
have worked hard to get-out-the-vote this year.
“As a
group of young New Zealanders in Naarm (Melbourne), we’ve
hosted pub meet-ups, put up posters, set up whatsapp groups
to spread the word and had enrolment stalls at gigs,” says
Raven Maeder, a New Zealander living in
Melbourne.
“Many of us left Aotearoa to find work
and opportunities, particularly because of the current
Government’s public sector cuts and underfunding of the
arts. The common sentiment among the young New Zealanders
we’ve talked to here is that we care deeply about Aotearoa
and a lot of us want to come home. But we need Aotearoa to
be somewhere we can afford to live and where our skills and
voices will be valued. We want a government that will
protect what is precious about home: our communities, te
Taiao and te Tiriti o Waitangi,” says Maeder.
In
Kirikiriroa Hamilton, local leaders have been using their
relationships to reach out to neighbourhoods, organisations
and communities, because the method of “trusted faces, in
trusted places” works.
“We have delivered wananga
in organisations, and community centres, promoted the
kaupapa at regular community network and marae hui and run
enrolment tables all over town including night-shelters, kai
security lines as well as prisoner rehabilitation
centres,” says local leader Kirsty Barber.
“We
have always been warmly received and people are relaxed to
ask questions, check details and enrol because they feel
safe in their own environments. Overall, our little crews of
2 or 3 have enrolled hundreds of people who, we know, would
not have done so. Every voice matters, every vote counts!
Democracy works when we all step up,” says
Barber.
