'Concerning': Voting rates down across Hawke's Bay, dramatic drop in Central Hawke's Bay

Voting rates have dramatically dropped in Central Hawke's Bay. Photo / File

Central Hawke's Bay residents are being urged to get their voting documents as data hints the district could record its lowest voter turnout in a decade.

As of Friday, only 24.81 per cent of the Central Hawke's Bay district had voted, a dramatic drop from the previous three election periods which recorded a voter turnout of 35.41 per cent in 2016, 32.06 per cent in 2013, and 33.15 per cent over the same period.

Aramoana/Ruahine Ward returns are currently at 22.46 per cent with the Ruataniwha Ward at 26.99 per cent.

Central Hawke's Bay District Council's chief executive Monique Davidson said normally at this point they would have already seen a visible spike in voting numbers.

"We are monitoring incoming votes, and historically would have recorded a surge in voter participation by now.

"This record slow response rate is concerning as we need our communities to fully engage and have a say on the future of their council and district and its growth over the coming three years," she said.

"With less than 10 days to go I encourage everyone to have a say and return their voting forms."

Both Napier City Council and Hastings District Council are also slightly down on recent years with NCC down from 26.76 per cent in 2010 to 23.03 per cent this year, both recorded over the same time frame.

HDC is faring worse, with 19.74 per cent of the votes have been collected, well down from the same time in 2010 where 27.22 per cent had been collected.

All residents should have received their voting packs in the mail by now if they enrolled to vote, and have until Monday, October 7 to return their votes through the post.

From Tuesday, residents will need to drop their voting forms directly into one of the ballot boxes at council offices in Waipawa, Hastings or Napier to ensure they arrive on time.

Any residents who has not received a voting pack are required to cast a special vote, which can be down at council offices.

Voting officially closes on Saturday, October 12 at noon.