Electoral rules
- SUBTOPICS
Election advertising, including broadcasting - all participants
The definition of election advertisement, the need for promoter statements, differening requirements for broadcast election advertising, and other rules common to all election participants. More »
Third parties
Information for and about individuals and groups who are not candidates or political parties themselves, but want to influence how others vote. More »
Electorate candidates
Anyone standing as a candidate in the 2008 general election must comply with campaigning and financing rules contained in the Electoral Act 1993, Electoral Finance Act 2007 and the Broadcasting Act 1989. The Chief Electoral Office’s Information for Parliamentary Candidates and their Financial Agents guide includes information about new campaign financing rules that apply from 1 January 2008. Candidates should study these requirements carefully before they undertake any advertising or accept any donations in relation to their campaign. It is a serious offence to breach these rules. Under the new rules a candidate must Appoint a financial agent, who is responsible for new rules covering donations, authorising election advertising and filing a return of election expenses and donations. More »
- ARTICLES
New election laws in force - summary
New laws are in place for the 2008 general election to be held nolater than Saturday, 15 November 2008. This article lists somekey areas of change. You should seek more information if anymight be relevant to you. Read more »
General election date & timetable
The 2008 general election will be held on a Saturday no later than 15 November. The date of an election is usually announced by the prime minister 6-8 weeks before election day. A diagram shows the sequence of key events in the parliamentary election process beginning with announcement. Read more »
General election results, recounts & challenges - an overview
Counting of advance votes may start from 3pm on election day. Votes cast on election day are counted from 7pm, leading to a preliminary result at about 11.30pm. Overseas and special declaration votes are included in the official count that follows election day. The official count is completed 2 weeks after election day. Read more »
Filling vacant seats between elections
Sometimes a seat in parliament becomes vacant between general elections because the sitting MP resigns, is expelled or dies. The way in which the replacement MP is determined differs between an electorate seat and a list seat. Read more »
How to make a protected donation
A donation protected from disclosure is a mechanism for any person who wants to make a donation of more than $1,000 to a registered political party or listed third party and does not want their identity to be disclosed to either the public or to the party receiving the donation. Read more »
Electoral law links
This page lists and links to current laws and regulations relevant to parliamentary, local government, and school electoral matters. Read more »
Electoral Finance Act 2007 - detail
The Electoral Finance Act 2007, Broadcasting Amendment (No 2) Act 2007, and Electoral Amendment Act 2007 received Royal Assent on 19 November 2007 and are published on the New Zealand Legislation website (where the Electoral Act 1993 and Broadcasting Act 1989 can also be found). Read more »
