Last chance to vote in the first referendum
If you still haven’t returned your voting paper for the first referendum on the New Zealand flag, time is running out.
“If you still haven’t voted, it’s not too late, but you will need to hurry,” says Robert Peden, Chief Electoral Officer. “To be sure that your voting paper gets back in time to be counted, you should take it to a Postshop before the close of business on Friday and put it in the postbox there.”
“We want all voters to have their voices heard and votes counted, so don’t leave it till the last minute,” says Mr Peden.
In this referendum, voters are asked to rank the five alternative flag designs selected through the Flag Consideration process, from a 1 for their most preferred to a 5 for their least preferred. They can rank as many or as few as they wish.
Then, in March 2016, there will be another referendum to choose between the most preferred option from the first referendum and the current flag. The flag that receives the most votes in the second referendum will be the official flag of New Zealand
As of Tuesday 8 December 1,256,163 voting papers had been received by the Electoral Commission (39.62% of enrolled voters).
More information about voting in the referendum is available at 0800 36 76 56 and at www.elections.org.nz/flag.