Election meetings

What's happened to all the election meetings?

Normally, before an election, we would expect to have had the opportunity to attend pre-election meetings where the candidates could set out their policies and answer questions from local residents.  But this year, there have been none in this area? Why?

The answer is COVID-19 and the associated restrictions on gatherings.

Mission Bay Kohimarama Residents Association was organising such a meeting, with particular emphasis on the two referendum questions.  We had speakers lined up to present the arguments for and against each of the referenda issues, and we had the main electoral candidates speaking as well.

Unfortunately during Level 3 and Level 2.5 it was not possible to hold meetings with more than 10 people, and later under Level 2 no more than 100 people. Our previous meetings have attracted over 200 attendees, and so it was not practical for us to hold a meeting until Level 1.  It is now too late to organise a meeting, and voting has already started, so unfortunately we have had to drop our plans.

Perhaps the most interesting aspects of this election are the two referenda questions:

• Do you support the End of Life Choice Act 2019 coming into force? 
• Do you support the proposed Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill?

Opinions on these two issues are quite divided, but before you vote, we suggest you take the time to check out exactly what is being proposed.  The Electoral Commission has prepared simple guides for each question, setting out the choices and explaining what would happen should these two pieces of legislation become law.  You can find these guides at the links below:

• End of Life Choice
• Cannabis Legalisation and Control

We apologise for being unable to hold an election meeting to ensure that you are well informed on the issues, but hope that the links above help you understand the referenda questions.