Welcome to the Elections New Zealand website. It is maintained by the agencies responsible for the administration of New Zealand's electoral system. 

Parliament has established a new Electoral Commission to integrate the responsibilities of the Chief Electoral Office and the current Electoral Commission. This entity will be fully functional by 1 October 2010. In the meantime, please contact the electoral agencies below.

The new Electoral Commission

Electoral Enrolment Centre

The Electoral Enrolment Centre maintains electoral rolls and conducts the Maori Electoral Option. The centre is a self-contained business unit of New Zealand Post Ltd, under contract to the Minister of Justice. The centre has a team of Registrars of Electors responsible for compiling and maintaining the electoral rolls for their electorate. As well as maintaining the electoral rolls on a daily basis and conducting enrolment update campaigns prior to all major electoral events, the Registrars also work in their local communities to encourage eligible electors to enrol. This is to ensure the maximum number of eligible electors are enrolled to vote in Parliamentary, local council and district health board elections, by-elections, referenda and polls.

Copy of the EEC overview booklet.

National Manager: Murray Wicks
Manager Policy & Administration: Rex Arrell
Manager Operations: Mark Johns
Information Services Manager: Bob Chandler

PO Box 190, Wellington, New Zealand
Level 2, Mainzeal Building, 181 Vivian Street, Wellington
Phone: +64 4 801 0700
Fax: +64 4 801 0709

You can find contact information for your local registrar of electors here.

Chief Electoral Office

The Chief Electoral Office conducts General Elections, by-elections and referenda. The office is a division of the Ministry of Justice. In a General Election year, the Office employs Returning Officers for the 70 electorates.  It receives returns of donations and election expenses from parliamentary candidates.  It also provides information to voters, candidates and parties relating to electoral events.

Corporate documents

Chief Electoral Officer: Robert Peden

PO Box 3220, Wellington, New Zealand
Level 3, The Vogel Centre, 19 Aitken Street, Wellington
Phone: +64 4 495 0030
Fax: +64 4 495 0031

Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission is an independent Crown entity which registers political parties and party logos. It also receives donations protected from disclosure, registered parties' annual returns of donations and returns of election expenses, and it allocates election broadcasting time and funds to eligible political parties. The Commission also encourages and conducts public education about electoral matters.

Corporate documents

Electoral Commissioners
President: Hon Justice Hugh Williams
Chief Judge of the Maori Land Court: His Honour Judge Wilson Isaac
Secretary for Justice: Belinda Clark
Chief Executive: David Henry

PO Box 3050, Wellington 6140, New Zealand
Level 5, Featherston House, cnr Waring Taylor and Featherston Sts, Wellington
Phone: +64 4 474 0670
Fax: +64 4 474 0674

Representation Commission

The Representation Commission is an independent statutory body that determines the boundaries of General electorates and Maori electorates after each five-yearly population census and Maori Electoral Option. The electoral boundaries were last updated in April 2002.

The Representation Commission for General electorates has seven members:

• Four people are members of the Representation Commission ex officio: the Government Statistician, the Surveyor-General, the Chief Electoral Officer, and the Chairperson of the Local Government Commission.
• Two members are appointed by the Governor-General. One represents the party or parties in Government, and the other represents the party or parties in Opposition.
• A chairperson (normally a District Court judge) is nominated by the other members of the Representation Commission (except the Chairperson of the Local Government Commission), and is appointed by the Governor-General.

When the boundaries of the Maori electorates are to be drawn, the Commission is joined by three more members:

• The Chief Executive of the Ministry of Maori Development (Te Puni Kokiri) ex officio.
• Two further members appointed by the Governor-General, each of whom must be Maori. One represents the party or parties in Government, and the other represents the party or parties in Opposition.

The Commission is serviced by the Chief Electoral Office

Justice Sector

The electoral agencies do their jobs independently and impartially in accordance with electoral law.  They are part of the Justice Sector and funded from Vote Justice, which is the responsibility of the Minister of Justice.  The Ministry of Justice has primary responsibility for policy development.

The new Electoral Commission

[fully functional from 1 October 2010)

The new Electoral Commission is an independent Crown Entity responsible for all electoral functions at the national level including public education, research, conduct of general elections, by-elections and referenda. It will also provide independent policy advice to Ministers and Parliament on   proposed or desirable changes to the electoral laws.