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The number of guaranteed seats for Indigenous council members on NZ councils will be slashed by more than half, after a divisive law change that forced municipal councils to submit the future of hard-earned Indigenous wards to a popular referendum.

Historical Context on Indigenous Representation

Māori wards, which can include one or more elected officials based on demographic data, were created in 2001 to give Māori electors the choice to elect a guaranteed Māori representative in municipal and provincial governments. Initially, local governments could only establish a Indigenous seat by initially putting it to a public vote in their region. Communities frequently spent years building local support and urging their local governments to establish Indigenous representation.

Policy Changes and Government Actions

To remedy the issue, the former administration allowed municipal authorities to set up a Indigenous seat without first requiring them to subject it to a public vote.

But in 2024, the right-wing coalition government reversed the change, stating local residents should decide whether to establish Māori wards.

Voting Outcomes

The new legislation required local authorities that had created a electoral district under Labour’s rules to conduct binding referendums alongside the local body elections, which ended on October 11. Out of 42 local governments taking part in the public vote, 17 voted to keep their seats, and twenty-five to abolish theirs – showing numerous areas opposed to reserved Indigenous seats.

The results represented “a crucial move in reinstating local democratic control.”

Opposition parties nevertheless have criticised the government’s law change as “discriminatory” and “anti-Māori”. After assuming power, the coalition government has ushered in extensive reversals to policies intended to improve Indigenous welfare and political inclusion. The government has stated it wants to end “ethnic-specific” approaches, and says it is dedicated to enhancing results for Māori and every citizen.

Urban-Rural Divide

Outcomes of the referendums were split down urban-rural lines – six of the seven urban centers mandated to hold referendums backed Māori wards, while rural regions skewed heavily towards removing them.

“It's unfortunate for the Māori wards that had only just come in – they’re only just starting to find their footing.”

Voter Turnout and Concerns

This year’s municipal polls registered the smallest electoral participation in over three decades, with under one-third of citizens casting a vote, leading to calls for an overhaul.

The process had been “a mockery”.

Comparative Treatment

Local governments are able to establish other types of electoral districts – including countryside seats – without initially mandating a public vote. The disparate requirements applied to Māori wards suggested the administration was singling out Indigenous inclusion.

“Ultimately, they were unsuccessful. Numerous localities have given the government a middle finger response.”

This remark concerned the 17 regions that voted to retain their wards.