Almost 90 per cent of people who participated in a national referendum asking New Zealanders whether smacking should be illegal have voted no, preliminary results show.

Polls have shown more than 80 per cent of voters planning to vote 'no' to the referendum.

There is something very creepy about the smacking referendum now arriving in the mail, John Roughan writes.

Concerns enthusiasts on both sides of the debate may try to corrupt the vote by stealing voting papers.

A sampling of children suggests most want smacking banned but there is still some support for it as a form of discipline.