Putting accessibility on the radar in this year’s Auckland local elections

The Auckland local elections take place every three years during October, and we’re about to come up to our next voting period, from Tuesday 9 September until midday Saturday 11 October.

While the politicking of the central government is much more visible, local government decisions impact citizens just as much as central decisions. It’s our most fundamental level of democracy and there are things your local council has sway over that the Beehive won’t do much about. Your local government manages more than you might realise.

Think of the community facilities in your area: the parks, playgrounds, public toilets, community centres, libraries, sports arenas, concert halls, galleries and museums. Maybe your area doesn’t have one or some of these, or it does, but they’re a bit janky, inaccessible or lacklustre. 

Think of the last time there was a civil emergency or natural disaster in your area. Was the response sufficient? Did everyone get timely information in accessible formats?

Or maybe you want to DIY your home and adapt it to your needs but you’re running into big fees or admin to get your building consent. The council manages local regulations such as these, as well as dog control, liquor licensing and noise control. 

And for many of us, the flexibility, ease and independence of travel is important. But with the fate of the Total Mobility Scheme looming, the pressure is on for public transport, parking, roads and town planning to be fit for purpose.

Voting in the Auckland local elections isn’t about picking the lesser of the evils; it’s time to be aspirational about what a thriving community looks like. Imagine what achieving climate goals, an accessible events centre and what a pumping arts and culture scene looks like for your region. 

In the last local election in 2022, New Zealand’s average voter turnout for metropolitan councils was at 39.8%: the lowest in over a decade. The Disabled Persons Assembly NZ said that this low turnout was a concern and raises issues around the low trust that New Zealanders have in local democracy. It also found evidence that New Zealand’s local electoral laws weren’t fully compliant with the UNCRPD, with Article 29 stating that “voting procedures, facilities and materials are appropriate, accessible and easy to understand and use”.

The difference between local and central government

Another major barrier to voting in local elections is simply not knowing enough about how it works. So let’s break it down.

Both local and central government are established by Parliament and have their roles and powers defined in legislation. While central government looks after national priorities, people in local government are responsible for community priorities. 

A spokesperson for Local Government New Zealand says: “In many instances, central government sets a national policy or standards that are then applied by local government in a way that suits the needs of their community.”

Take the transport system for example:

The spokesperson says: “The central government sets the direction in the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport. The central agency, Waka Kotahi, then prepares the National Land Transport Programme. From here, Regional Transport Committees translate national goals into meaningful regional plans which are supported by councils.” 

While the central government is funded by a number of taxes, most local councils are funded by rates: the money collected from property owners. However, you can vote whether you’re a property owner or renter. Councils also receive grants and subsidies and generate income from regulatory fees like parking fines, the sale of goods and services like swimming pool charges, and interest earned from investments. 

Parts of local government you can vote for

The mayor
The mayor provides direction and vision for the council. They lead the development of the council’s plans, policies and budgets, and they are the spokesperson for the council. 

The LGNZ spokesperson says it’s not as if the mayor is the boss of the council and makes all the decisions. “The mayor is more like the chairperson and leader at the council table… at the end of the day they only have one vote and it’s up to all councillors to reach a majority decision.” 

Ward councillors
Councillors are representatives and advocates of their community, take part in crucial decision making and help guide policy. The function of a councillor varies from place to place. 

Local board members (Auckland only)
Local board members provide local leadership and prepare a three-year plan that informs Auckland Council’s Long-Term Plan, among many other plans set by the governing body. They’re democratically accountable for decision making, are responsible for local events and community facilities, and have the power to develop local bylaws or propose local targeted rates.

Councillors and the mayor form the governing body, which votes on major decisions for the region. The governing body will also appoint a chief executive, who will appoint an executive team. This team runs the day-to-day operations and they are responsible for the council’s operation and service delivery and provide advice to the governing body. 

Access accommodations for voters

Auckland Council accommodates some accessibility functions and has incorporated accessible formats for understanding how local elections work and accessing candidate information:

• The VoteAuckland website is NVDA screenreader-compatible and meets the AA standard under the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.2.
• The VoteAuckland online candidate directory will be live from September 1.
• They also have a series of Election 101 videos in NZSL. 
• Voting packs include a QR code that links directly to the candidate statements and accessible formats. 
• Candidate statements translated into New Zealand Sign Language will be available on Infowave
• Audio recordings of candidate statements are available on the TellMe phone service 09 283 0044
• Special voting is offered at 24 libraries and Auckland Council is running 100 voting events.

Telephone dictation voting is also available, including to New Zealanders living overseas. You can request phone voting by calling the electoral office at 0800 922 822. If you make a request before September 9, an electoral official will call you back to record your vote during the voting period, from September 9 to October 11. Your vote will be submitted securely through a phone dictation process. 

There is no online voting in New Zealand and there are no plans to move towards online voting due to security reasons.

Some of the progress made since the 2023 general elections has helped make local elections more accessible. Ari Kerssens wrote a great summary of accessible voting options at the time. 

At a national level, the main achievement is that in 2023, the Electoral Commission surpassed the statutory requirement for accessible voting places, with 1495 fully accessible voting places and 962 voting places accessible with assistance.

Following the 2020 Disability Strategy, the Electoral Commission is currently in the early stages of developing a long-term strategy to outline accessibility principles to guide the Commission’s work. 

Anusha Guler from the commission says: “The Strategy will be supported by an action plan for each general election, detailing accessible information and service commitments.

“Whaikaha has offered to assist the Commission where it can in developing the long-term Strategy.”

What now?

You can vote if you: 

• Are 18 years old or over;
• Live in Aotearoa and have done so for 12 months or more;
• And are a citizen, permanent resident or hold an open ended resident visa.

Check you are enrolled to vote. The Electoral Commission says to contact them immediately if you find that you’re not already enrolled by now, or you’ve been removed from the roll. You can still cast a special vote if you enrolled late. 

You may have noticed candidates have already begun campaigning. To get an idea of who you might vote for, Aucklanders are invited to check out the VoteAuckland online candidate directory. It’s a webpage that helps voters find out which ward and local board areas they’re voting in and who is standing for that particular area. The directory lists all the candidates, including their policies and priorities for Tāmaki Makaurau. If you live in Auckland, this website will also show you which local board you are in. 

Then just look up [the name of your ward] + “local candidates 2025” to know who to keep an eye on. For each seat allocated to that ward (and local board), you can choose who best represents you. 

From September 9 you can cast your vote. You can either do this by dropping off your voting papers inside the return envelope at an orange vote box in your region before midday on Saturday 11 October, or putting it in any New Zealand Post box by Tuesday 7 October. 

If your pack never arrived, was lost, or you enrolled late, you may be eligible to cast a special vote during the voting period. 

*This article was produced in paid partnership with Auckland Council.

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