Which voting system do you want?

This week we launched a survey asking you to have your say on the way the Council is elected. The survey offers you two clear options for selecting councillors, community board members and Mayor. One is the system you already know well, First Past the Post (FPP). The other is less familiar, Single Transferable Voting (STV).

Every three years councillors decide which voting system will be used in the upcoming election. We will make that decision on 13 August. But before we do that, this year we want to get a clear indication from the communities we represent what system they prefer.

There are often calls for a change in the way we vote during elections. This was no different during the local body election in 2019. That year, ours was one of 67 councils to use FPP to elect our leaders. Another 11 local authorities used STV.

There are advantages and disadvantages with both systems. Voters are very familiar with FPP: the way the votes are counted is easy to understand, and the results clearly show how many people voted for each candidate. STV is a proportional voting system and is more complex. Instead of ticking the candidate you want, you rank candidates in order of preference. Because voters’ second, third, and other preferences are considered, the results can better reflect the community support each candidate has. 

Our survey runs until 21 July, and while it is not binding, it will help your councillors decide whether to opt for a new voting system. If we do change to STV, that will be the way we vote in the 2022 and 2025 elections. If we don’t change, we must reconsider the options again in three years.

To make what can be a dry and complex explanation more familiar and easily digestible, we have compared the voting choices to collecting pipi. This is a pastime most of us are familiar with. I urge you to find out more about each option on our website or read the newspaper adverts running this week. You can complete the survey online, or if you don’t have access to the internet, find out more about the two options in brochures available at our libraries and service centres. These include a printed survey form you can complete and lodge at the library or service centre.

Whichever option you prefer, the most important thing is to participate. That’s what keeps our democracy strong and responsive to community needs. This is only one part of our review of how Council is elected. We are also planning to look at Māori representation and whether our current wards fairly represent residents. We will tell you more about that soon. In the meantime, please have your say on the way you vote for Council and get your friends and whanau to participate too.