Last-minute deal means Māori electoral option will change
The Labour Government and National Party have reached an agreement to change electoral law, making it easier for Māori to choose which roll to join.
The Government had hoped that it would not require National’s support to pass this bill. But after Speaker Adrian Rurawhe ruled that this bill would require a super majority to pass, Justice Minister Kiri Allan submitted some last-minute amendments to get the National Party on side.
With National’s support, the bill would likely pass this week – before coming into effect next year. Allan said its passage marked ‘‘a great day for democracy’’.
National originally opposed the bill, which would remove a heavily criticised rule that Mā ori can only choose which roll to join during a four-month window that arrives every five or six years.
The rule has been labelled pointless, creating unnecessary confusion about the electoral system. Reviews of the electoral system have suggested a simpler process could encourage more Mā ori to vote.
The Electoral Commission, political scientists, Waitangi Tribunal and Human Rights Commission recommended that the rule be removed – saying it was one reason Māori participation was lower during elections.
Given that requirement sat within the Electoral Act, which requires a super majority for any substantive change, the Government had to get the National Party on board.
Yesterday
morning,
Allan lodged some last-minute amendments to her bill. She said these changes had been negotiated with National to ensure the bill had at least 75% support.
The main last-minute change was to introduce a three-month prohibition on switching rolls, in the lead-up to general elections.
With the bill set to pass this week, it meant Mā ori voters would be able to choose what roll to be on before the 2023 general election. From April, Mā ori would be able to change rolls – until later in the year. The election was expected to be held in the second half of the year.
National Party justice spokesperson Paul Goldsmith had raised concerns that making it easier to change between rolls could gamify the electoral rolls, and make the electorates less proportional.
He had been pushing for a fourmonth block on switching roles before any election, saying that could ensure the system wasn’t ‘‘gamed’’.
Earlier in the year, the Green, Mā ori and Labour parties all had separate bills which sought to remove the rule that only allowed Mā ori to switch electoral rolls during that set window. The Māori Party bill was voted down last week, causing co-leader Rawiri Waititi to criticise the other parties for siding with the Government’s ‘‘watered down’’ bill.