The distinctive orange envelopes are arriving in letterboxes, holding voting papers for local government elections.
You’ll have until noon on 11 October to vote for the Porirua mayoralty, Porirua City councillors standing in the Parirua (Māori), Onepoto or Pāuatahanui (General) wards and the Porirua-Tawa Constituency on Greater Wellington Regional Council, as well as three polls: two binding polls on whether Porirua keeps its Māori Ward, and Greater Wellington keeps its Māori Constituency, and a non-binding poll on future Council structures and whether the next Council should explore this.
Porirua’s deputy electoral officer, Jack Marshall, says it’s getting to crunch time.
"The mayor, city and regional councillors make decisions that impact your life on a daily basis - from the harbour, libraries and the pools, infrastructure, and where millions of dollars are spent, as well as the levels of rates needed to fund these - so it’s important to have your say on who represents you on Council."
Can I vote soon as I get my voting papers in the post? Yes. You can complete the papers whenever you like, and pop these into one of the orange voting boxes all around Porirua, at places you might visit regularly, such as libraries and supermarkets. The full list is on our website: https://poriruacity.govt.nz/your-council/mayor-councillors/elections-2025/vote-poti/where-to-drop-your-vote/
What am I voting for?
Local elections are held every three years and you’re electing community representatives for Porirua and the regional council, including the mayor of Porirua, and 10 city councillors. There are also three polls alongside this year’s election, as outlined above.
What’s STV?
The Single Transferrable Voting system is used in Porirua and for the regional council. For STV, you rank candidates in order of preference. You can vote as many, or as few people as you like, just don’t skip a number. https://poriruacity.govt.nz/your-council/mayor-councillors/elections-2025/vote-poti/how-to-vote/
Oops, I’m not enrolled. What can I do?
Quick - get enrolled. Head to vote.nz or come along to one of our community voting events. We can help you enrol or update your details, and issue you a special vote at the same time https://poriruacity.govt.nz/your-council/mayor-councillors/elections-2025/vote-poti/community-voting-and-special-voting-info-events/
What if I lose my voting papers?
You’ll need to cast a special vote. Come along to one of our community voting events and we can help you out.
When will we know results?
Progress results will start coming out around 3pm on 11 October. Keep an eye on Porirua City Council’s website and Facebook page. The declaration of official results will happen between 16 and 22 October.
If you don’t get your voting papers by 22 September, get in touch. You can email us at [email protected], or come along to one of our community voting events.
All the information you need can be found, including candidate videos of those standing, at https://poriruacity.govt.nz/your-council/mayor-councillors/elections-2025/vote-poti/
10 Sep 2025
