Mount Maunganui/Papamoa Ward candidate Clayton Mitchell put the apathy down to things not being tough enough for people to care.
"When things get really bad, then people will turn up."
Mount/Papamoa ward and mayoral candidate Richard Moore said it was infuriating for candidates to come out and then be ignored by the general public.
"Something has to be done, it is ridiculous."
He said the council was the closest form of government to the people of Tauranga because of the effect council decisions had on their lives. "We all want good debate."
Another Mount/Papamoa candidate and sitting councillor David Stewart put the poor turnout down to the lack of a big issue.
"If people are unhappy with the council then they turn up. Unless there is a problem, people will not come."
Mr Stewart said things had changed over the years and he no longer expected halls to be filled unless there was a problem. People were also communicating differently, such as over the internet.
"We need to be more innovative."
Mayor Stuart Crosby said the laissez-faire attitude to election meetings was a national trend which he partly blamed on education.
He believed schools should be teaching civic responsibility and democracy to children from a very young age. "It has never been done to my knowledge."
Mr Crosby said the low returns of voting papers was linked to the three different elections going on at the same time, using two different voting systems. "People give up - it is not user friendly."