Under the current system all council elections are postal votes and there is no provision for early votes to be cast prior to voting papers being issued.
“I’ve had a number of complaints from constituents who are travelling overseas before the voting papers are sent out in late August,” says Stuart Nash.
“The only option open to them is to provide an overseas address, have the voting papers sent to that location, and then post them back in time for the poll; as you can imagine that’s a scenario which would only work in very rare situations.
“My understanding is this is an issue which comes up more and more frequently at local government elections and is one of the drivers behind a push towards online voting, which may be trialled at local government elections next year.
“I will be writing to the Minister of Local Government to pass on the concerns of my constituents and iterate the failings of the current system. I believe we must have an online voting system in place by the next council elections.
“There are people out there who are incredibly passionate about the amalgamation issue in Hawke’s Bay and who simply will not be able to exercise their democratic right to cast a vote on the fate of their city. We should be able to cater to these people, and we can’t – that’s not fair, or right,” says Stuart Nash.
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