Hipkins and Luxon urge voters to enrol before Sunday deadline

Labour leader Chris Hipkins and National leader Christopher Luxon have both urged New Zealanders to enrol to vote before the midnight deadline today. This deadline marks the final opportunity to register ahead of the general election on 7 November.

The deadline follows changes to electoral law that removed the ability to enrol and vote on election day or during advance voting. Chief electoral officer Karl le Quesne stated it was "fair" to say these changes would impact enrolment numbers, though the exact effect is difficult to determine.

Hipkins noted that over 300,000 eligible New Zealanders were not on the electoral roll at the last count. He suggested younger voters are disproportionately affected, noting that 70% of 18 to 24-year-olds were enrolled as of Friday, compared to approximately 77% on election day in 2023.

Luxon denied that the government has disenfranchised voters, stating the Electoral Commission has nearly doubled its advertising regarding turnout and enrolment. He argued that New Zealanders have had more than a year to enrol since the changes were passed in Parliament.

How it developed

• Sun 25 Oct, 5:05pmReport 4 provides specific enrolment statistics for 18 to 24-year-olds and mentions Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith's reasoning for the law changes.

Where reports differ

• Hipkins suggested the Electoral Commission had not done enough to inform voters of the changes, while Luxon claimed advertising had almost doubled.

Compiled from reports by 1News, Stuff and RNZ.