Local Electoral Act 2001
Act of Parliament in New Zealand / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Local Electoral Act 2001 is an Act of the New Zealand Parliament that provides for the regulation of local body elections in New Zealand, which entails provisions relating to the timing of local elections and other forms of rules surrounding electoral processes, Māori wards and constituencies, and which voting system the local government uses in elections.[3] It was established following the 2001 Review of the former Local Elections and Polls Act 1976 by the Department of Internal Affairs which was charged with reviewing and rewriting the Act governing local elections.[4]
Local Electoral Act 2001 | |
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New Zealand Parliament | |
Assented to | 29 May 2001 |
Commenced | 1 July 2001 |
Legislative history | |
Introduced by | Sandra Lee-Vercoe |
First reading | 13 December 2000[1] |
Second reading | 15 May 2001[2] |
Committee of the whole | 17, 22, 23 May 2001[2] |
Third reading | 23 May 2001[2] |
Related legislation | |
Local Government Act 2002 Electoral Act 1993 | |
Status: In force |
On 20 October 2022, the draft report of the Future for Local Government Review recommended that the voting age for local elections be lowered to 16 and extend local government terms from 3 years to 4 years.[5]
On 21 November 2022, the Supreme Court of New Zealand ruled in Make It 16 Incorporated v Attorney-General that the voting age of 18 years was inconsistent with the right to be free from discrimination under section 19 of the Bill of Rights Act 1990 and that they had not been justified.[6][7] The day after, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson confirmed that the Labour Party ministers were considering whether to amend the Local Electoral Act to allow 16-year-olds to vote in local body elections.[8]