Welcome to e-news

• Welcome to this first issue of e-news designed to keep you in touch with news, developments and research from the electoral world in New Zealand and beyond. It's being e-mailed from the Electoral Commission to those who have subscribed on the Elections New Zealand website and to other stakeholders.
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• Your thoughts on format and content are welcome by e-mail to feedback@elections.org.nz.
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Recognising great work

• An election win for a political party of students from Tapora School saw them actually run the school for a day! This was one of the outstanding learning experiences for which teachers and schools were awarded four Wallace Awards and three commendations in an Electoral Commission competition for teaching using the election context. An ESOL teacher at a PTE was also commended for her unit with adult students.
• Auckland University of Technology students cleaned up in a competition for student journalists' election and political reporting by winning the only Wallace Award made (for their inhouse publication Te Waha Nui), and five of eight commendations made to individuals.
• Encouragement and recognition of research continues with application calls out for Wallace Scholarships (close 1 Feb for tertiary student research in 2006) while academic Wallace Awards details are also available.

Electoral Commission scopes challenges and achievements

• The commission's briefing to the incoming minister discusses areas of concern and external factors covering: a problematic structure of electoral administration, the importance of independence in electoral administration, tightness of timing for any law changes, declining electoral participation, and an inadequate research base. Issues predicted to need ministerial consideration in the next six months include the structure of electoral administration, electoral law review, possible unification of electoral education for all systems in one body, making encouragement of participation a statutory role, and giving support to citizenship education.
• An extensive education programme and preparations for the 2005 general election are described in the commission's annual report. Other highlights include administration improvements to make significant savings released for education work and the commission redevelopment of the Elections New Zealand website judged third best in an SSC-commissioned audit of government sector websites.
• Both documents include references to the commission's current strategic plan and statement of objectives which shape its day-to-day priorities and work.

Following the election

• Ministerial responsibility for electoral matters rests with new Justice Minister, the Hon Mark Burton. The Justice and Electoral Committee of Parliament comprises Russell Fairbrother, Christopher Finlayson (Deputy Chairperson), Ann Hartley, Lynne Pillay (Chairperson), Nandor Tanczos, Nicky Wagner, and Dr Richard Worth.
• The Chief Electoral Office's online Election Results contains comprehensive data as both .html and downloadable .csv files for user manipulation. If you want election stats then take some time to explore what's available, particularly under statistics and split voting. On election night (and since) this site has serviced thousands of visitors from New Zealand and more than 100 other countries.
• Deadlines are looming for parties to get broadcast advertising invoices into the Electoral Commission for payment (12 Dec) and to file their election expense returns (19 Dec), while electorate candidates have until 16 Jan to file their returns of election expenses and donations with the Chief Electoral Office.

Research round-up

• The Australian Youth Electoral Study (YES) second report titled Youth, Political Engagement and Voting concludes "that a wide range of political activities experienced in schools or during adolescent years in community organizations, can have beneficial effects on attitudes towards, and intentions to engage in adult political behaviour, such as voting..."
• Similar conclusions are drawn in Now or Never, an international literature search made by Electoral Commission chief executive Dr Helena Catt.
• Conclusions of a UK Electoral Commission review of low voter turnout in general elections cite the habitual nature of non-voting and a falling sense of civic duty among the causes. "We also know that some non-voting is the product of a broader political disengagement and that a section of the electorate are sceptical about the efficacy of voting at any election... There is also a clear need to re-connect people with politics, and vice-versa, beyond moments of (relatively) high political drama such as general elections."
• Parties donations disclosures for 1996-2004 are now online as both .pdf and .xls downloads.