Advance votes top 900,000, about 200,000 more than in 2023
The final election result is planned for about 27 November, once special votes are checked.
|November 3, 2026Listen to the full interview:
More than 900,000 votes were cast in the first week of advance voting, about 200,000 more than at the same point in 2023.
Chief Electoral Officer Karl Le Quesne says voters can vote outside their electorate with a special vote, which takes a few minutes extra. He says voting place hours vary, so check vote.nz first.
Special votes are checked against the roll before they are counted. “It takes about 20 days to do all of that,” he says.
The final result is planned for about 27 November.
Enrolment reached 93.6% after the enrolment deadline moved to 25 October.
He says overseas enrolments are up about 40,000 on 2023, to about 132,000.
A mobile voting service visits some small rural communities on a day agreed with locals.
To learn more, visit elections.nz
Watch the full interview:
CountryWide CONNECT with Andy Thompson & Sarah Perriam-Lampp is our daily rural show livestreamed from 11am-1pm. Visit country-wide.co.nz on how to watch/listen or download the CountryWide CONNECT mobile app, available on Apple iOS and Android.
