The Premium Debate: Subscribers weigh in on Richard Prebble’s take on the election

All the signs point to apathy being the kingmaker of this election. Photo / Getty Images

Opinion

OPINION

The dark matter in elections is apathy, writes political commentator Richard Prebble.

If apathy were a political party, it would have more than 20 MPs.

Jacinda Ardern won the last election with the biggest mandate of any party since MMP began, with a near-record turnout of 81.54 per cent. Yet apathy got 18.46 per cent - the enrolled voters who did not vote. And another 200,000-plus people did not even enrol.

Pollsters know apathy is important, but there is no way to measure the likely non-vote.

Read the full story: Why the non-voter will lead to Labour’s worst defeat - Richard Prebble

Have your say by going to bayofplentytimes.co.nz or dailypost.co.nz and becoming a Premium subscriber.

People should be fined like in [Australia] if they don’t vote. Young men died so we have this right. - James M

In reply to James M: I am a Kiwi living in Oz. My husband and I have made sure our details are up to date on the election role. We can now vote out the party that locked us out of our own country during the worst of the pandemic. We know countless other Kiwis over here poised to do the same. Thank you to all those young men who gave us this freedom. - Robyn B

Labour has backflipped on many of its unpopular policies, and out-of-control spending at the 11th hour. They are that arrogant that they believe Kiwi voters won’t notice the stealth.

Without so much as a blush, they come up with another $4 billion in savings, noticeably in the forward years. Inevitably this means those savings will never be realised.

If Labour were dinkum, they would have included their savings in the May Budget, starting from 1 July. Labour cannot change its spots. They truly believe the voters are mugs.

The only thing they have left in the tank, is dirty tricks.

I’ll be locking my vote in as soon as advanced voting opens.

Goodbye, Labour. - Walter H

Sorry Richard, it’s not just the non-voters who will ensure the greatest-ever defeat for Labour. I bet the actual voters will see to that quite succinctly. - Alan P

My decision to abstain has not been taken lightly. I am in my 70s and this will be the first time I have deliberately chosen to abstain.

I am normally slightly to the left of centre, but have voted National many times, but probably more times for Labour.

This time round I find that I have little or no agreement with Labour’s main policies and the same for National’s.

The large, and ever-increasing, difference in income between “have’s and have-nots” is simply too large.

This lies at the bottom of most of our problems in New Zealand today. Neither major party’s policies on this subject are tenable.

So, I am making a vote - a vote of ‘no confidence’ in either party. - Alexander M

In reply to Alexander M: Good for you, we have a democracy and this is your right. Hopefully 2026 will see a change of mind for you. - Mark Y

Richard, please remember that one should never interrupt the enemy when he’s making a mistake.

Certainly, one shouldn’t point out how to correct the mistake to boot. - Marcus A

So now we know - National would give a miserly tax cut to the poorest (the ones that are emptying the foodbanks today), a tiny sweetener to the average family, and do nothing to make the very rich pay a fair share.

And they can’t be bothered to tell us which services to the public they will cut, or how many of Act’s ludicrous ideas they would be forced to accept in a coalition.

Indeed, only the apathy of Labour/Green voters can get National/Act into power. - Brian C

In reply to Brian C: An excellent policy from National.

Particularly to cut government waste, which has been high under Labour. - Ian U

- Republished comments may be edited at the editor’s discretion.

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