Candidate videos pull ‘vote local’ into focus

Local election candidates will be able to tell communities who they are and what they stand for during short video clips that will be published on the FNDC website.

All candidates are being offered the opportunity to record 90-second clips by council staff who will ensure that each candidate answers the same three questions – who they are and what roles they are standing for, their top priorities for council and the Far North District, and the biggest challenge facing the district.

All Northland councils – Northland Regional Council, and Whangārei, Kaipara and Far North district councils – are providing candidates with a filming opportunity with the aim of making it easier for voters to make well-informed decisions when filling in their postal voting forms.

The videos will complement traditional candidate handbooks included with voting papers. These feature a photo and statement from each candidate.

The candidate videos will be published from Monday 1 September on the council’s Speak Up and Vote webpage and is one of several initiatives to make voting more accessible and to improve voter turnout in the Far North. In 2022, just 41 per cent of those enrolled cast a vote in the Far North local elections.

To encourage higher participation in this year’s election, mobile ballot boxes will also be made available to Far North communities. Six mobile units will be fuelling up to run the Mobile Ballot Box Tour, seven days a week from Wednesday 10 September to Friday 10 October. They will visit marae, local halls, schools, sports clubs and markets so council staff can answer questions about this years’ election and help those living remotely to complete and lodge their voting papers. A full schedule of stops on the Mobile Ballot Box Tour will be available from the end of August.

Hosting Vote Day Events is another way for communities to encourage participation. These events are community led and community focused. The events can be specifically about encouraging voting, or they can be added on to events already planned.

If you would like to invite a mobile ballot box to your neighbourhood or if your community want to host a Vote Day Event please fill in an Expression of Interest Form for ’Vote Day’ Events by Friday 8 August.

Hosting a ‘meet the candidates’ event is another option for communities. If you’re hosting an event for all mayoral, councillor or community board candidates please contact elections@fndc.govt.nz to discuss promoting it on our website.

Participating in local government processes is an important opportunity for each of us to directly affect what happens in our communities. Local government provides key services we all rely on day-to-day – such as water, wastewater, and roading. It also provides community place-making facilities, such as parks and playgrounds, libraries and much more.

VOTE LOCAL.

Mobile Ballot Box Tour invitation - in English

Mobile Ballot Box Tour invitation - in reo Māori