It took South Wairarapa councillors just 10 minutes to confirm their support for a Maori ward seat at the district’s council table.
The unanimous approval came more than two decades after the body agreed to establish a Maori Standing Committee, to help ensure the local tangata whenua voice was heard.
Then central government intervened. The result is that 42 district councils across the motu will hold referenda on their Maori ward seats during the October local body elections _ a move that will costs ratepayers an estimated $2 million. Here, an estimated $20,000.
The district councils’ response to pursue costly local referenda was seen as strong opposition to the government’s action from both councils and Maori communities.
Two district councils, neighbouring Upper Hutt and Kaipara, abandoned their Maori wards _ citing referendum cost.
As one commentator noted, “with dozens of Māori seats up for referendum, this year’s local elections will reveal where Aotearoa truly stands on representation.” Note the comment casts the referendum issue as being wider than the “Maori ward” issue.
European (non-Maori) residents are statistically accepted as more likely to vote in council elections than Maori. A Parliamentary inquiry into the 2022 local elections showed non-Maori 39 percent more likely to vote than Maori. The Maori “likely to vote” figure was 25 percent, according to an Auckland Council analysis.
Overall local body voter turnout is another indicator, dropping from 60 percent in 1989 to 42 percent in 2022, the inquiry found.
Spinoff’s Atea editor Liam Ratana noted the Māori seat referenda “are about more than local governance; their outcomes will shape the trajectory of representation and inclusivity in New Zealand for years to come. They serve as a barometer for the country’s evolving views on equity and partnership under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.”
He added: “A vote to remove the wards would signal a retreat from efforts to uplift underrepresented voices, while a result that keeps them could bolster momentum for broader structural change.”
Voter choice.
