Lee Suckling: A delicious reason to vote

Photos / APN, 123RF

In the interest of ensuring a large proportion of the modern generation heads to the polls this Saturday, I'm going to do a little unsolicited work for the Electoral Commission and suggest yet another reason to tick a few boxes in three days time. Let's call it Voting Brunch.

The process of voting is exciting for some, but mundane for many. Lining up in a school hall on a Saturday morning definitely isn't my idea of fun, and it is made less pleasant by the incessant hustling of election day volunteers, whose goal is to maintain apolitically peaceful whilst moving the queues along as fast as possible.

So what better to make voting more enticing for the young? Serve it with a side of organic bircher and an almond milk latte.

Voting Brunch should not be your average Saturday feed-and-run. It's an opportunity to get together with friends and talk about the state of the nation, and where you hope the future is heading; both on a state level, and on a personal level. It's a great time to reflect on who you were three years ago, and what has changed in your life since. Importantly, it's a chance for ultimate self-satisfaction: you get to say, in your own little way, you contributed to the preservation of a free and democratic society.

However, Voting Brunch requires some rules. For the politically-minded, election day can be a stressful affair, particularly when the outcome of the evening is completely up in the air.

Let's start with the Election Day itinerary. Voting Brunch must - I repeat - must, come after voting, not before it. This is not an occasion to coerce your mates into voting for the same party as you, nor is it right to bully them for having stubbornly divergent political opinions from your own. There's potential for arguments to break out if Voting Brunch is held pre-polling, so it's better to hold your get-together after the fact, knowing what's done is done. Also, brunch should be a reward the championing of democracy, not something you need to get over and done with.

Polls open at 9am, but I wouldn't advise being there with the over-eagers. Meet up with your friends at your voting location at the leisurely hour of 11am, as this is when the Electoral Commission says the "busy time" is over. Stroll to your Voting Brunch location thereafter; with any luck you'll be in line for less than 10 minutes.

You don't really want to get back in your car or on to public transport after voting to go to brunch, so choose a polling location that suits both events. If you want to brunch in Ponsonby, All Saints Anglican Church is right on Ponsonby Road, Parnell brunchers can venture either to Holy Trinity Cathedral or Jubilee Hall, and Britomart fans' easiest place to poll is Liston House, at the bottom of Hobson Street.

Choosing the appropriate outfit is an integral part of Voting Brunch. Have some fun and be fancy: dress like a candidate, not an average citizen. Feel free to subtly pledge your political allegiance in your dress, but don't go nuts. Nobody wants to look like a Parnell Rise billboard. When discussing outfit choice with my boyfriend last week, he said, "I think this is going to be one occasion where it's not appropriate to wear red trousers". To which I replied, "Wear tweed. Tweed is nice and neutral." A friend, part of our Voting Brunch party, facetiously jumped in: "Yes, Lee. Because plenty of Labour voters wear tweed." I guess you all know who we're not voting for now.

Election Day is all about the people's choice, but ensure you look at the menu carefully and order something that won't give you food envy. You can then ask your Voting Brunch partners who they voted for, though the astute will notice others' political stances represented in their food choices (National supporters might go for a tried-and-true favourite like waffles with bacon and banana, while Labour voters will probably order half-baked eggs).

Wherever you're choosing to dine, choose some place licensed. Voting Brunch is an occasion for champagne! So what if it's only 11.30? There's a good 12 hours before you'll know the election result, and you can't drink all day unless you start In the morning. After all, everybody's hard work is done, and the only thing left to do for the weekend is to sit back, and wait for the outcome.