On this page you will find information regarding:
Key Election Dates | Ngā rā mātua
The key dates for the 2022 local elections are as follows:
How do I enrol to vote? | Me pēhea taku rēhita ki te pōti?
Visit vote.nz, email enrol@vote.nz, call 0800 36 76 56, or freetext your name and address to 3676 to enrol to vote or to update your enrolment details.
If you’re enrolled to vote for the parliamentary elections, then you’re automatically enrolled for Council elections too. If you’re enrolled, you’ll get an enrolment update pack in the mail in early July. If all your details are correct then you don’t need to do anything. If you don’t receive an enrolment update pack, you’re either not enrolled or you need to update your enrolment details.
You can enrol as a resident if you:
- Are 18 years or older
- Are a New Zealand Citizen or permanent resident.
If you’re unsure where to enrol, you can enrol at the address where you spend a substantial part of your time. If you do not have a current fixed address, you can also enrol at the last residential address where you lived for at least 1 month, even if that was some time ago.
If you need help with enrolling or have accessibility needs, the Electoral Commission can help: Get help to enrol – Electoral Commission.
Thursday 30 June 2022: Electoral Commission starts sending out enrolment update packs.
Friday 12 August 2022: is the last day to enrol to receive voting papers by mail – otherwise you’ll need to vote by special vote.
Friday 7 October 2022: is the last day to enrol for the local elections.
Māori roll
People of Māori descent have a choice to make when first enrolling – whether to enrol on the General roll or the Māori roll. There’s an option to change rolls after each census – the next chance to do so will be in 2024. Both residents and non-resident ratepayers can be on the Māori roll.
If you’re on the Māori roll, you’ll vote in our new Māori ward.
How to Enrol as a Non-resident Ratepayer
If you own property in Porirua City but live elsewhere you may be able to enrol as a non-resident ratepayer elector and vote in both areas.
You can also fill in the Enrolment Form for Ratepayer Electors and return it before Friday 12 August 2022 via one of the following methods:
- Email: ratepayer@electionservices.co.nz
- Post: Electoral Officer, Porirua City Council, PO Box 5135, Victoria Street West, Auckland 1142
- In person: drop it off at the Council administration building at 16 Cobham Court, Porirua.
You can only enrol, or be nominated to enrol, once in each Council area, no matter how many properties you own in that area.
You can find enrolment information in accessible formats on the Electoral Commission site. Formats include New Zealand sign language, audio, large print, and e-text. Info included:
- Are you eligible to enrol and vote?
- General roll or Māori roll
- Can you go on the unpublished roll?
- Enrol from overseas?
- Ways to enrol
Information is also available on how to find help to enrol.
You can also call Blind Low Vision NZ’s Telephone Information Service (TIS) to find out more about enrolling and voting.
Information in different languages
Enrolment information is available on Vote.nz in several different languages. These include: English, te reo Māori, NZSL, Arabic, Burmese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Cook Islands Māori, Farsi – Persian, French, Gujarati, Hindi, Japanese, Khmer, Korea, Malay, Niuean, Punjabi, Russian, Samoan, Somali, Tagalog, Tamil, Thai, Tokelauan, Tongan, and Vietnamese.
What ward am I in?
The number of Councillors for each ward is determined by the estimated resident population of each ward and the total population of the city as a whole. For the first time in the 2022 elections, one Councillor will be elected from a Māori ward.
Which ward you will be voting in depends on where in the city you live, and what electoral roll you are on.
The Wards are different from previous elections, as a result of the representation review that was undertaken last year. We now have three wards - two general Wards, and one Māori Ward.
If you are on the General Electoral Roll, you will vote in either the:
- Onepoto General Ward
- Pāuatahanui General Ward
If you are on the Māori Electoral Roll, you will vote in the Parirua Māori Ward.
Ward Finder
We will have a ward finder available shortly to help you find your ward.
General Wards
The two general wards are the Onepoto General Ward and Pāuatahanui General Ward.
If you are on the General Electoral Roll, you will vote in one of the General Wards.
The Onepoto General Ward elects five Councillors, and is made up of the following areas:
- Mana Island, Titahi Bay, Takapūwāhia, Elsdon, Kenepuru, Porirua City Centre, Ranui, Cannons Creek, Aotea, Waitangirua, Ascot Park.
The Pāuatahanui General Ward elects four Councillors, and is made up of the following areas:
- Pukerua Bay, Paekākāriki Hill, Judgeford, Plimmerton, Hongoeka, Cambourne, Paremata, Whitby, Pāuatahanui, Papakōwhai
A map of these wards can be found here.
Māori Ward
If you are on the Māori Electoral Roll, you will vote for the Parirua Māori Ward, which covers the entire city and elects one Councillor.
How to Vote | Me pēhea te pōti
If you’re enrolled, check your mailbox for your voting forms between 16 and 21 September 2022. Complete your voting forms and return them:
- to any of our specially marked ballot boxes – more information will be available closer to the election
- to our Council Building at 16 Cobham Court, Porirua
- to the regional voting hub at Te Pokapū Hapori Community Centre at 107 Manners Street
- in the freepost envelope via any New Zealand Post box (we recommend posting before Tuesday 4 October) – Find your nearest NZ Post box
- to any Porirua City Library – Find your nearest library and its opening hours
If you need help filling in your voting document
If you’re physically impaired, unable to read or write or are not familiar with the language on the form, you may need help to vote. You can authorise someone you trust to mark the voting document for you following your instructions. You can also come to the Council Front Counter at 16 Cobham Court, Porirua and get help from elections staff.
Special voting
Sometimes you might need to cast a ‘special vote’. You will need to do this if you:
- Didn’t receive your voting forms in your letterbox by 22 September 2022
- Lost or damaged your voting forms
- You enrolled after 12 August 2022
- You are on the unpublished (confidential) electoral roll
- Your enrolled address is out of date, and you have been living at a new address for a month or more
Casting a special vote is easy and requires you to complete a simple declaration, which we can help you with.
We can issue you a special vote at our Council Front Counter at 16 Cobham Court, Porirua, or you can email elections2022@poriruacity.govt.nz or call 0800 922 822 and our Electoral Officer can help.
Single Transferable Vote (STV) voting
Voting for the Porirua City Council elections is done via the STV method, where voters rank candidates in order of preference. On your voting paper, put a ‘1’ next to your favourite candidate, ‘2’ next to your second favourite, and so on.
You can rank as many or as few candidates as you wish, just don’t skip a number. More information on how STV works can be found on the STV website.
Who can you vote for?
Mayor and Council:
No matter where in Porirua City you live, you can vote for who you want to be the city’s Mayor and for your local ward councillors.
Greater Wellington Regional Council:
You can also vote for two councillors in the Porirua-Tawa Constituency of the Greater Wellington Regional Council.
Hutt Mana Charitable Trust:
You can also vote for the Hutt Mana Charitable Trust.
Further Information
Further information on standing and elections can be found in our frequently asked questions document, and our factsheet on the 2022 local elections.
Need Help?
You can contact our elections team at elections2022@poriruacity.govt.nz, or via phone on 04 237 5089.
