MEDIA RELEASE

Electoral Enrolment Centre
Wednesday 12 November 2008

Enrolment Records Set For 2008 General Election

The Electoral Enrolment Centre has set new records for enrolment in the 2008 General Election.

A total of 2.99 million people were enrolled to vote for Saturday’s election, or 95.31 percent of the estimated eligible voting population.

A record:
• 95.31 percent of estimated eligible voters enrolled (95.22 percent in 2005)
• 2,990,759 people enrolled (2,847,396 in 2005)
• 405,430 of Māori enrolled (376,441 in 2005)
• 229,666 on the Māori roll (207,305 in 2005)
• 175,764 on the general roll (169,136 in 2005)
• 59,667 of voters with an overseas postal address enrolled (43,535 in 2005)

“New Zealand has one of the highest enrolment rates in the world,” says Murray Wicks, National Manager of the Electoral Enrolment Centre.

“To get these sorts of results the Electoral Enrolment Centre works steadily every day to get people enrolled and to encourage people to update their address details if they move house.

“In election year our enrolment drive steps up several gears to help ensure as many people as possible who are eligible to enrol, are enrolled.”

“While the election is over the need to enrol and for people to keep their details up-to-date continues,” says Mr Wicks.

Next year will see an indicative referendum held by postal vote on the question “Should a smack as part of good parental correction be a criminal offence in New Zealand?”

“People need to make sure they keep their enrolment details up-to-date to be able to have their say in that referendum,” says Mr Wicks.

Enrolment forms can be obtained by, Freetexting your name and address to 3676, visiting any PostShop, going online to www.elections.org.nz or by calling 0800 36 76 56.

Full details of the enrolment statistics, including electorate breakdowns, are available from http://www.elections.org.nz/ages/.

ENDS

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