Bernard Orsman: No wonder voters don't bother to make a choice

Andrew Williams. Photo / Paul Estcourt

Why do so few people vote in local body elections? John Banks, Len Brown and Andrew Williams on TVNZ's Q & A political programme yesterday gave the answer.

After marvelling at another exhilarating performance from the All Blacks overnight, those Aucklanders who tuned in would have come away bitterly disappointed.

As the Super City mayoral contest enters the title stage, the two heavyweight contenders - Banks, the Auckland City Mayor, and Brown, the Mayor of Manukau City - are failing to generate any excitement.

Waitakere Mayor Bob Harvey, a panellist on the Q & A show, was correct when he said this was a two-way race between Banks and Brown. The other candidates are a sideshow and do not look to be influencing the outcome.

The real shame of the mayoral campaign is how underwhelming Banks and Brown have been. The two mayors have broadly similar visions and broadly similar platforms, but no action plan to make voters stand up and say "vote for me".

Banks is pinning his hopes on a mantra of "affordable progress" and strong decisive leadership with a promise of infrastructure bonds - read a big borrowing programme.

In other words, more of the same Banks taking Auckland down a dull conservative path.

Brown offers a slightly different brand of leadership based on uniting Auckland's diverse communities, which he is probably better qualified to do, although question marks remain about how he will perform on the big stage. His is a zig-zagging path.

So far, it has come down to the two men's differing styles and political colours. The blue-blooded Banks versus the red-blooded Brown.

A lacklustre campaign, however, is playing into the hands of Banks, whose vote is locked in among affluent and conservative voters. A bigger voice than the 40 per cent voting figure at the 2007 elections is vital for Brown.