The results of the local government elections appear to show that New Zealanders are generally supportive of a more diverse range of representatives, having voted in greater numbers for candidates from traditionally under-represented groups. The elections have therefore modernised our councils in a small but very significant way, helping address some long-standing imbalances in representation. …
The vast majority of us are currently disobeying the instruction to vote in the current local government elections. Despite a cacophony of voices from authorities and commentators urging the public to give a tick to local politicians, it looks like we are headed for a record low voter turnout. Turnout figures have been trending down …
“Diversity” is a central theme of the current local government elections – with the common criticism that incumbent politicians are generally too “stale, male, and pale” (or variations on that). Numerous commentators and candidates have lamented the lack of women, ethnic minorities, and youth in local government. There are signs, however, that the current elections …
Could the most interesting aspect of the current local government elections turn out to be generational change? At the moment, there is a surge of media and activist focus on younger candidates standing for office. It suddenly seems to be “cool” again to want to be a local body politician. Some are calling the apparent …
The election race is on. The nominations process for local government positions has now closed, and the political campaign is officially underway. But does the public care? Will many of us even vote for any of the various mayoral or council candidates? Going on recent experience, we shouldn’t expect many more than a third of …
One of the central elements of any democracy is information. Voters need to know what’s going on in government for accountability to be possible. That’s why in New Zealand we have various conventions, as well as the Official Information Act (OIA), which are supposed to allow the public to see how decisions that affect them …