Vote Compass Reaches 200,000+ Respondents

SUNDAY 24 AUGUST 2014

On Friday 22 August the total number of respondents to Vote Compass reached an impressive 200,000 - and that number continues to grow rapidly (the total was more than 204,500 as of 5.00pm Sunday 24th).

The voter engagement tool was launched by ONE News on Sunday 17 August, and the swift uptake from New Zealanders has exceeded all expectations.

Vote Compass is a tool designed to connect New Zealanders with the issues that matter, giving a clear picture of how their views match with the different parties on questions of economy, education, health, the environment, taxation and more. Asking 30 policy-related questions, the survey then asks people to weight their responses, so the results they see at the end best reflect the issues they care about.

Founder and Executive Director of Vote Compass, Clifton van der Linden, is thrilled about how fast this country has been to respond to the survey. He says:

“The number of respondents so far has been incredible and it says a lot about the place and potential of social media in contemporary democratic practice. But more importantly, it says that New Zealanders are politically engaged and that they care about how their society is governed. This may seem at odds with what we are often led to believe by recent statistics on voter turnout, but I think that it speaks to the need for new mechanisms by which citizens can engage with government and play a meaningful role in the processes of governance.”

TVNZ’s Head of News and Current Affairs, John Gillespie, adds: “We are delighted with the level of participation we’ve seen. It shows voters want to hear about policy over politics. It’s their collective voice that’s the really important one.”

ONE News will soon be able to report back to voters on the trends shown by the data being collected.

To take the survey, visit: http://www.onenews.co.nz/votecompass

#VoteCompass

ENDS

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