Nobody Past the Post

The most striking aspect of the general election to a historian like myself is, perhaps, the extraordinarily low voter turnout. New Zealand in the past has prided itself on the fact that three out of four registered electors go to the polling booths on election day. This year, one out of three stayed away from the booths. Not since the late 19th century has the turnout been so lacklustre. The number of people qualified to vote but not enrolled as electors also seems to be higher than for many years. Why? A growing percentage of the population seems to feel that it has no voice in parliament. Is it linked with the fact that the wealth gap in New Zealand, as measured by the gini coefficient, has widened faster in the last generation than in any other OECD country? Whatever the causes, one outcome is that no political party has come anywhere near getting past the post. The National Party has not 'grown' its vote. The true vote for the party has dropped. Only one in three registered electors voted for National. Nor has the growth of Greens and the sudden bouncing back of New Zealand First been anywhere near as striking as may seem at first glance, given that they have gained ground in a quickly shrinking active electorate. The biggest defeat in the election seems to have been suffered not by any political party but instead by parliamentary democracy.

ENDS

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