Summarised by Centrist
From the next election, voters will need to enrol or update their details at least 13 days before polling day. The 12-day advance voting window will remain, but the Electoral Commission will be able to start processing special votes earlier.
Automatic address updates will reduce paperwork, and the bill also bans handing out food or entertainment near polling booths in a move Goldsmith says will make the rules “crystal clear.”
ACT leader David Seymour backed the changes, calling late voters who missed enrolment deadlines “dropkicks” and noting they had more than a thousand days to get it done. “If you’re too disorganised to follow the law, maybe you don’t care that much,” he said.
Green MP Ricardo Menéndez March warned of hardship for the poor and sick. But critics say the left is more concerned with protecting chaotic last-minute voting than with restoring electoral integrity.
In 2023, more than 110,000 people enrolled or updated their details on election day. Many had ignored repeated enrolment reminders. Goldsmith said the mixed messaging from the Electoral Commission, urging voters to enrol early while assuring them they could do it on the day, had backfired.
New Zealand First’s Winston Peters called concerns about disenfranchisement “balderdash”. The changes also fix a 2023 loophole that let Labour ministers hold power beyond the standard caretaker window, ensuring future transitions remain constitutional.
