The most important vote in town: Napier aquarium's Penguin of the Year competition returns

Little Penguins Pepper, Mr Mac and Tux meeting on the pier at the National Aquarium's Penguin Cove. Photo / Supplied

October is election month for New Zealanders, and they have a big decision to make: Who will receive their vote for Penguin of the Year.

The National Aquarium of New Zealand competition is back for its third year, with a field of 14 penguins campaigning for the title.

After votes came in from all around the world last year, Draco took the title from her boyfriend – 2018 Penguin of the Year Timmy.

General curator Joe Woolcott expects the 2020 competition to be just as exciting.

"Due to the lockdown earlier in the year, we saw an increased interest in our penguins' activities through our online channels, meaning they now have an even bigger fan base," said Woolcott.

"We're expecting bookings for our online Virtual Penguin Encounters to fill up fast as this will give our followers a great insight into the various characteristics of their favourite penguins and may confirm who they'll vote for."

The 14 'Little Penguins' all originally arrived at the aquarium having been abandoned as chicks, or been sick or injured.

While some penguins can return to the wild after recovering, these ones became permanent residents as they were not strong enough to return to their natural habitat.

Beyond the two previous champions, one of the favourites to take the title is 2019 finalist Mo, who was awarded the Penguin of the Month award for September by the penguins' keepers for consistently being the first to go swimming in the morning.

The initial round of voting opened on Thursday, and will run on the National Aquarium website until next Friday, October 9, when three finalists will be named.

Another round of voting between that trio will see the ultimate winner crowned on October 15.