Time's almost up to enrol for Northland By-election
If you want to vote in the Northland by-election and you’re not enrolled, time is running out. That’s the message from Northland Registrar of Electors Deborah Darton, with just a few days to go until the by-election this Saturday, 28 March.
“Everyone enrolled in the Northland general electorate should have received their EasyVote packs in the mail by now,” she says. “If your EasyVote pack hasn’t turned up in your letterbox, you need to enrol or update your details now. Remember, only those enrolled on the general roll in the Northland electorate can vote in the by-election.”
It’s easy to enrol or update your enrolment details. Enrolment forms are available at all advance voting places and PostShops, and can also be completed online to print and return.
“But you do need to hurry,” says Ms Darton. “You must be enrolled by this Friday, 27 March. You cannot enrol on election day.”
To be eligible to enrol in the Northland electorate you must:
- Be 18 years of age or over; and
- Be a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident who has lived in New Zealand continuously for 12 months at some time; and
- Have been living in the Northland electorate for one month or more.
“If you are Māori, and enrolling for the first time, you can choose whether you go on the Māori roll or the General roll,” says Ms Darton. “If you enrol now and choose the Māori roll, you will be in the Te Tai Tokerau electorate and won’t be able to vote in this by-election. If you enrol now and choose the General roll for the Northland electorate, you will be able to vote in this by-election. The roll you choose now will be the roll you are on for the next general election. Whichever roll you choose, you will be unable to change roll types until the next Māori Electoral Option which is scheduled for 2018.”
More information about enrolling to vote is available at www.elections.org.nz.