Clock is ticking for Māori to decide which roll they will vote on

The July 13 deadline is fast approaching for Māori to decide which roll they will vote from.

Time is running out for Māori voters to choose which electoral roll they want to be on for this year’s general election – the Māori roll or the general roll.

Voters of Māori descent can choose the Māori roll or general roll. When they first enrol to vote, they can change rolls at any time except in the three months before an election.

“Māori who want to change the roll they are on before the 2023 general election need to do it by midnight on July 13. You can’t switch rolls between July 14 and election day on October 14. You will be able to switch rolls again after the election,” says Karl Le Quesne, chief electoral officer.

Chief electoral officer Karl Le Quesne.

At this year’s election, voters on the Māori roll will vote for a candidate in a Māori electorate and voters on the general roll will vote for a candidate in a general electorate. Whichever roll a voter is on, they will choose from the same list of political parties when it comes to their party vote.

“E tātou mā, there is a deadline looming on July 13 for people who are already enrolled to vote. Think about the roll you are on, and if that’s the roll you’d like to vote on at this election,” says chief Māori adviser Hone Matthews.

“If you’re happy with the roll you’re on, you don’t need to do anything. If you would like to switch from the general roll to the Māori roll, or the Māori roll to the general roll, you need to act now.

”Check that your tamariki and your mokopuna are enrolled to vote too. There’s no deadline for first-time enrollers – if you’re enrolling for the first time, you can enrol and make your roll choice right up to and on election day,” says Matthews.

Between March 31 and June 22, 11,835 people changed roll types – 6,389 from the general roll to the Māori roll, and 5,446 from the Māori roll to the general roll. There have been 1,360 new enrolments on the Māori roll and 727 new enrolments on the general roll.

People can enrol, update their address and change rolls if they would like to online at vote.nz, or call 0800 36 76 56 to ask for an enrolment form to be sent to them in the mail.