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Submissions

NZ Parliament Inquiry into the 2025 Local Elections

Posted in Submission, Government; Tagged Justice, Accessibility, Government, Maori sovereignty; Posted 55 days ago by DPA Less than a minute to read

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To: Justice Select Committee 
Date: February 2026

 

Purpose

The purpose of this submission was to feedback on disabled people’s experiences as voters and candidates at the local government elections held in September/October 2025. 

Summary of DPA submission

Main findings 

The submission outlined that disabled people’s experiences at the local elections were mixed in terms of their ability to participate fully. 

Disabled people received their ballot papers successfully as did other voters but found it difficult in some cases to locate the orange DX (private postal company) voting bins in places such as supermarkets, libraries and council service centres. 

However, postal voting is expected to become much slower and more inaccessible given the ongoing erosion of the postal system. 

Also disabled people favour the ability to cast digital ballots alongside paper ballots and, if in person voting is introduced (as is the case for parliamentary elections) at the next local elections in 2028, then there is potential for digital, paper and postal ballots to be available as complementary options for all voters, something that would especially benefit disabled voters. 

The parliamentary inquiry sought disabled people’s views on telephone voting as well, given this was trialled by several councils around the country – the first time it has been used for local elections. 

Disabled voters, particularly blind and low vision voters, were pleased that this option was available, but some were unaware that it was, meaning that more promotion will have to be carried out on the availability of telephone voting before the next local elections.  

Also, DPA recommended that telephone voting be mandated for all local councils around the country by legislation. 

 

Recommendations: 

  • That management of future local elections be handed over to the Electoral Commission as they are the best agency placed to oversee local elections.  
  • That the Local Elections Act 2001 is replaced with new local electoral legislation which has as one of its key principles the removal of all barriers to electoral participation for disabled people. It should include clauses upholding the UNCRPD and other international conventions on human, civil and political rights as they apply to electoral participation. 
  • That all local councils be required to provide telephone voting from the next local body elections.  
  • That information from local authorities about the availability of telephone voting is made more widely available in accessible formats at the 2028 local body elections.  

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DPA Submission 2602 NZ Parliament Inquiry into the 2025 Local Elections

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