School Holidays Won’t Help ‘Super City’ Voting Numbers

“’Super City’ voters will have three weeks to send back their postal ballot papers, but many Auckland families will be sidetracked by school holidays which will take up the last two of the three-week voting period. Candidates will need to remind people to vote early, because many families will be leaving town,” says Cameron Brewer, councillor candidate for Auckland’s new Orakei ward.

“The voting papers get posted out on Friday 17 September, then the third term breaks up the following Friday. Families will be busy, out of their routine, and many will opt to go away. It doesn’t bode well for maximum voter participation. By the time the fourth term starts on Monday 11 October, it’s all too late. Voting for the local body elections concludes noon Saturday 9 October.

“For candidates like me in very family-orientated wards, it presents a challenge. I’m going to be encouraging voters to return their papers in that first week. It’s a shame this massive watershed election clashes with primary, intermediate and secondary school holidays. We need young Auckland families participating in this election yet the school holidays will naturally distract many. Sadly, not as many families will turn probably out as potentially could have.”

Cameron Brewer says as well as encouraging people to vote early, he has moved his own campaign into full swing early, knowing that school holidays are set to eat into the campaigning and voting period.

“It’s meant I’ve had to come out of the blocks with a bit more intensity early on. I’ve launched a website www.cameronbrewer.co.nz and this weekend had 22,500 ‘Vote Brewer’ brochures distributed across the ward. Candidates will need to weigh up whether it’s worth doing the likes of advertising or mail-drops in those last two weeks given a lot of people will be away,” says Mr Brewer.

ENDS

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