Website Will Feature Virtual Election

The Electoral Commission has designed a special “Virtual Election” web page on the Internet that allows people to calculate the number of seats each political party can gain in the coming election based on the range of figures entered by the person concerned.

Web surfers can simply type in the percentage of the party vote they think each party will get and the interactive site will calculate the make-up of the resulting Parliament using the Sainte-Laguë mathematical formula used by the New Zealand electoral system to determine list seats.

The Electoral Commission’s communications manager, Doug Eckhoff, says the new website “Virtual Election” device will be particularly useful for people wanting to know how the proportional voting system works as well as for pollsters and political parties wanting to translate their research figures into seat numbers.

By clicking on the right button people will also be able to see the detailed workings behind the result and access a glossary which provides an explanation of many of the terms used.

Another interactive feature of the electoral agencies website www.elections.org.nz enables eligible voters to check their enrolment status on-line. Electors just need to click on the “Check Your Enrolment Details” button on the home page and then follow some simple steps. People who find they are not enrolled can either download a form from the site or request it to be sent to them by mail.

ENDS

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