A hīkoi to encourage voting in the council elections is being held in Hastings on Friday September 26.

The Hīkoi ki te Pōti (Hīkoi to vote) will start at the Hastings Clocktower at 8am Friday and travel the 500 metres to a ballot box at the Hastings District Council office on Lyndon Road. Organised by Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga and For Wards Hawke’s Bay, it aims to boost voting in the local election and support a referendum vote to keep Māori wards. Only 33.7 per cent of electors voted in Hastings 2022 election, which was one of the lowest turnouts nationwide.

“We encourage people to vote for their chosen candidates and vote to keep Māori wards, which give Māori a voice in local decisions,” says Taiwhenua Te Manu Tāiko Stewart Whyte. People should bring their completed voting papers in the envelope, or if they’ve already voted, come and support those walking to the ballot box, Stewart says. Flags and placards are also welcome on the hīkoi.

There will be brief speeches at the clocktower, including from Hastings mayoral candidates Wendy Schollum and Damon Harvey about why they support Māori wards. For Wards Hawke’s Bay co-ordinator Neill Gordon says better engagement in the election and fair representation on our councils are better for everyone.

“Across the region, at least 70 candidates standing for all five councils support Māori wards and 36 are opposed,” Neill says.

“So support outweighs opposition by 2 to 1, or to put it another way, for every candidate opposed, two support Māori wards. We’re looking forward to seeing that support reflected in people voting to keep Māori wards in the referendums.

“The reason so many sitting councillors and candidates support keeping Māori wards is that experience shows they cost us nothing, work brilliantly and mean better decisions for all,” Neill says

“Māori wards are one-person one-vote, with candidates elected or booted out by Māori roll voters. It’s the same system we’ve had with the Māori seats in Parliament since 1867 and no surprise they’ve been embraced by 42 councils nationwide.

“Democracy is not about majority rule, the fundamental principle is fair representation and that’s what Māori wards help ensure.”

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