Results in for 2018 Māori Electoral Option

There have been net increases of 1200 on the Māori roll and 4015 on the general roll. Photo/File

Over 1300 enrolled voters in the Waiariki electorate have switched to the general roll according to results from the 2018 Māori Electoral Option out today.

The Option closed with more than 23,300 Māori nationwide choosing to change roll types or enrol to vote.

The Option ran from April 3 to August 2 and gave all enrolled voters of Māori descent the opportunity to be on the Māori roll or general roll.

At the end of the Option, 52.4 per cent of Māori voters were on the Māori roll and 47.6 per cent were on the general roll, compared with 52.8 per cent and 47.2 per cent at the start of the Option period.

There have been net increases of 1200 on the Māori roll and 4015 on the general roll.

In the Waiariki electorate 1307 voters shifted to the general roll with 973 moving from the general roll to the Māori roll. There were 401 new enrollments on the Waiariki roll.

In the Rotorua electorate 328 voters moved from the general roll to the Māori roll with 412 moving from the Māori to the general.

There were 60 new enrollments of Māori descent in the Rotorua electorate.

National manager for enrolment and community engagement Mandy Bohté said about 95 per cent of Māori voters chose to stay on the roll they were already on and there was a small change in the proportion of voters on each roll.

"Of those who opted to change rolls, more moved from the Māori roll to the general roll, and when it came to new enrolments, more opted for the Māori roll," she said.

The data will be provided to Stats NZ which will use the results of the Option, along with information from the Census, to calculate the number of Māori and general electorates for the next two elections. Stats NZ is working towards releasing the number of electorates in March 2019.

There are currently seven Māori electorates and that number could increase, decrease or stay the same.

After the number of electorates has been calculated by the Government statistician, the Representation Commission will be convened to determine the electorate boundaries and the names of the electorates for the 2020 and 2023 general elections.

For an electorate breakdown and previous Māori Electoral Option results go to https://www.elections.org.nz/meo/results.

The following table provides a summary of the changes.

There have been net increases of 1200 on the Māori roll and 4015 on the general roll. Photo/File