Voting-age women outnumber men

19 September 2016

Voting-age women in New Zealand outnumbered men by about 137,000 at the 2013 Census, and women are more likely to vote, Statistics NZ said today.

In 1893, New Zealand became the first nation in the world to grant women the right to vote. This year, Suffrage Day (September 19) comes just as local government voting papers go out on 16–21 September.

Census figures showed there were more than 1.66 million women in New Zealand aged 18 years and over (18+), compared with about 1.53 million men.

Women are more likely than men to vote in general and local government elections, according to past Statistics NZ General Social Surveys. In a survey after the 2011 general election more than 80 percent of women said they voted, compared with about 77 percent of men.

Almost 95 percent of women and men aged 65+ years said they voted in the 2011 general election, compared with just over half of those aged 18 to 24.

Voter turnout is lower for local government elections, at less than 65 percent for women and 62 percent for men. However, 87 percent of all those aged 65+ said they’d voted in local elections in a 2012 survey, compared with just 28 percent of people aged 18 to 24.

Census figures for 2013 showed there were 1.19 million European women in New Zealand aged 18+ years. There were about 193,000 Māori women in that age group, closely followed by almost 187,000 Asian women. Pacific women aged 18+ totalled about 90,000.

Women in politics

Elizabeth Yates is the first woman mayor in British Empire. She became Onehunga's mayor in 1893.

First woman MP was Elizabeth McCombs, in 1933.

First woman Cabinet minister was Mabel Howard (Minister of Health), in 1947.

First woman prime minister was Jenny Shipley, in 1997.

First woman elected as prime minister was Helen Clark, in 1999.

For more information about these statistics:

• Visit Voting-age women outnumber men

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