August 29, 2023
Batchelor book breaks electioneering ban
Taurangamoana kaumatua Buddy Mikaere says stop co-governance campaigner Julian Batchelor has crossed the line from spreading misinformation to illegal electioneering.
He’s lodged a complaint with the Electoral Commission about a booklet put out by the Whangarei preacher.
He says mixed in with the anti-Maori rhetoric are calls to vote for parties that oppose co-governance and promise to do away with the Treaty of Waitangi.
Buddy Mikaere says the next step should be for the Electoral Commission to ask the police to investigate the breach of the Electoral Act, which carries a fine of up to $40,000.