In a democracy, voting is our superpower. We get to choose the future. And yet, in the last local body elections in New Plymouth, only 47% of people voted. That is less than half. In my book, that doesn’t count as democracy.
This September, you get to elect people to represent you on Council. The Council are responsible for our library, parks, roads, water, and for supporting our community in many other ways. You have a say in who is at the table – these are the people that you can approach if you think the Council can do things differently, do things better. You can choose your representatives, so make sure you get out and vote for someone who can represent you.
Make sure you are registered to vote at the correct address. If you recently received a letter from the Electoral Commission, you’re good to go. If you didn’t you need to update your details before 16 August 2019.
You can update your details at www.vote.nz or call 0800 ENROL NOW.
If you’ve missed the deadline for enrolling, you will need to cast a special vote. Special votes are available from Friday 20 September 2019 to noon on Saturday 12 October 2019 at:
Civic Centre, 84 Liardet Street, New Plymouth; or
by phoning 0800 922 822.
You will receive your voting papers between 20-25 September 2019. Make sure you open them, and have a think about who you want to vote for.
IMPORTANT: Don’t forget about it and leave the envelope on top of the fridge/in a drawer/in the pile of paperwork that you never quite get to.
Complete the voting papers. This year, the election will use a system called Single Transferable Voting (STV). This system lets you rank your preferred candidates. If you are in the New Plymouth Central Ward, you can rank your top 10 candidates.
Send the voting papers back! Voting closes midday 12 October 2019. You can send them back via post - you need to post them by 8 October 2019 to make sure they arrive in time. Otherwise, you can drop them at the Civic Centre, 84 Liardet Street, New Plymouth.
Stay tuned for the results! Preliminary results will be available 13 October, and final results on 19 October 2019.