Same-day election enrolments to be scrapped in electoral law overhaul

Same-day enrolment for elections is set to be scrapped, with the government announcing legislation to overhaul electoral laws it says have become unsustainable.

Previously, voters have been able to turn up to the booth at any time during the advance voting period and enrol at the same time, as well as on election day, with their vote being counted as a special vote.

Justice minister Paul Goldsmith said late enrolments, while well intentioned, were resource intensive and had placed too much strain on the system.

“The final vote count used to take two weeks, last election it took three,” he said.

“If we leave things as they are, it could well take even longer in future elections. The 20-day timeframe for a final result will likely already be challenging to achieve at the next election without changes.”

The government has agreed to close enrolment before advance voting begins, with people needing to enrol or update their details by midnight on the Sunday before advance voting starts on the Monday morning (in other words, 13 days before election day).

The legislation sets a requirement of 12 days advance voting at each election, and the changes would mean special vote processing could get underway sooner.

Justice minister Paul Goldsmith says late enrolments, while well intentioned, are resource intensive and has placed too much strain on the system.
Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii

The Electoral Amendment Bill contains some other changes, including the introduction of automatic enrolment updates so the Electoral Commission can update a person’s address directly following a data match.

The process would not be used for new enrolments, to allow for Māori to choose whether to enrol on the general roll or Māori roll when they first enrol.

Postal requirements for enrolment will be removed, to acknowledge the decline of postal services.

Free food, drink or entertainment within 100m of a voting place will be made an offence, punishable with a fine of $10,000.

“There has been some confusion in the past around what is and isn’t treating. This will make the rules crystal clear,” Goldsmith said.

The ban on prisoner voting, which the government had already announced, will also be included in the bill.

In addition, the donation threshold for reporting the names of donors will be adjusted from $5,000 to $6,000 to account for inflation.

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