The bill seeks to address 'unfair' nature of system which means it can take years for Māori to change rolls if they are on the wrong one. Photo / Andrew Warner
The bill seeks to address 'unfair' nature of system which means it can take years for Māori to change rolls if they are on the wrong one. Photo / Andrew Warner
National says it is “disappointed” the Government has ignored its concerns around a bill to allow Māori to change electoral rolls right up to election day, especially given it needs their support to pass.
Currently, Māori can only switch between the Māori and general electoral rolls once every five to six years during a four-month slot after the census, despite elections occurring every three years.
The last Māori Electoral Option was in 2018 and the next is due in 2024.
Proponents have labelled the process “racist” and contributing to low voter turnout, as if Māori are on the wrong roll it can take years to correct.
The Māori Electoral Options bill as introduced would allow Māori to change rolls at any time, up to and including on polling day.
National's justice spokesman Paul Goldsmith said in the current form his party would vote against the bill. Photo / Mark Mitchell
After going through submissions and the select committee process, MPs have recommended an exception be included around the timing of byelections to prevent “tactical” roll switching.
However, the Justice Committee - with a majority Labour MPs - did not go further in recommending an exception be included close to a general election, as proposed by National and Act.
The Bill will make the Māori Electoral Option a “continuous option”, and is aimed to come into force in March 2023 in time for the 2023 General Election.
However, as it requires changes to the calculation of the Māori electoral population it also requires changes to the Electoral Act, which requires a 75 per cent majority or a referendum, meaning it would need the support of National to pass.
National’s justice spokesman Paul Goldsmith said it was “disappointing” the Government had not addressed its concerns, especially given it would need their support to pass the bill.
Goldsmith said their main concern was about “tactical” vote switching.
Their submission suggested where the outcome of a person’s Māori electorate might be a foregone conclusion, the General electorate in which they live might be highly marginal, or vice versa.
“It’s about maintaining confidence in the system and that everybody has an equal approach. We don’t want one group to be able to pick and choose which vote will have the most impact,” Goldsmith said.
The party was “disappointed” the Government made “no effort” to address their concerns, given the “desirability of bipartisan support for electoral law changes”.
As is, the National Party said it supported the “status quo”, allowing a rolls switch within a four-month period following each census.
“This ensures the correct proportionality is maintained so that Māori and General electorates have the same voting age population,” their submission said.
Justice Minister Kiri Allan. Photo / Mark Mitchell
In its response, Act said it supported the “intention” of the bill, to encourage more voters of Māori descent to participate during election periods.
“The current requirement of an elector having to stay on the Māori roll for five years is nonsensical.”
The party did not agree, however, that people should be able to swap rolls at any time. This ability should be limited to once per parliamentary term.
The party said this “continuous” ability was unfair to other voters.
Attorney General David Parker has vetted the bill and says it appears consistent with the Bill of Rights Act.
Justice Minister Kiri Allan said in a statement they were continuing to work with other parties to ensure there was “as much bipartisan support as possible”.
She refused to answer questions about why the general election exclusion was not included nor if they agreed they would need National’s support to pass the bill.
