The Electoral Commission’s chief Māori advisor believes the commission has done enough to improve the Māori voting experience this election.
Massey University Associate Professor Veronica Tawhai has cited instances of unfair treatment and institutional racism at some polling booths in 2017 and 2020, and she’s concerned not enough has been done to prevent a repeat.
But Hone Matthews says the commission has made some changes and it’s also worked hard to encourage Māori to vote.
“We’ve reached out to Māori Council, we’ve reached out to Iwi Chairs (Forum), we’ve collaborated with Whanau Ora. So we’ve reached out to every Maori organisation we could think of to try and get that message out to people,” he says.
The Electoral Commission has written all its posters and pamphlets in the dialects of each Maori electorate region, and the number of fully bilingual kaupapa Māori voting places has gone from one to 15 this election – with more planned for the future.
