If you’re eligible and are voting in an election for the first time, you must enrol to vote.
Enrolment forms are available at all post shops or you can enrol using the following methods:
Get ready to enrol to vote information is also available in various accessible formats on the Electoral Commissions website, as per the following links.
When you enrol, your name, address and occupation are listed on the electoral roll.
If you believe that having your details recorded on the printed electoral roll could threaten your personal safety, or that of your family, you can apply with the Electoral Commission to go on the confidential unpublished roll.
How to go on the unpublished roll (vote.nz)
If you have previously registered to vote in a general election, you are automatically enrolled to vote in a local election in the area where you live.
You can check or update your enrolment details contacting the Electoral Commission or checking your enrolment details on their website.
vote.nz
Whangārei District currently has a District-wide Māori ward.
If you’re of Māori descent, you can choose between the Māori roll and the general roll when you first enrol to vote. You can only vote for candidates in the ward you’re enrolled in (Māori or general).
If you choose the general roll, you’ll vote for candidates in a general ward in a Local Election. If you choose the Māori roll, you’ll vote for candidates in a Māori ward in a Local Election.
If you are of Māori descent and have previously registered to vote in a general electorate, you are enrolled on the general roll. You will be able to switch rolls until 5 September 2025.
Whangārei District Wards
For local elections, there are two electoral rolls, a resident roll for resident electors and a ratepayer roll for ratepayer electors.
Resident roll
Your voting papers will be sent to the address where you were living at the last general election in 2023. If your address has changed since the last general election, you can update your details with the Electoral Commission.
Enrol or update your details (vote.nz)
Ratepayer roll
If you live outside Whangārei District but you pay rates on a property in the Whangārei District, you may be eligible to be enrolled on the ratepayer roll.
Enrol on the ratepayer roll
You can enrol as a non-resident ratepayer by completing the form below and returning it to the electoral officer.
Step 1: Download and complete the Ratepayer Enrolment form:
Ratepayer enrolment form(PDF, 204KB)
Step 2: Return the Ratepayer Enrolment form to:
The Electoral Officer
Whangarei District Council
PO Box 5135
Wellesley Street
Auckland 1141
For more information on the ratepayer roll, eligibility or to make changes to the roll, please contact the Electoral Officer:
Phone: 09 973 5212
Email: info@electionservices.co.nz.
Companies, businesses, trusts, corporations, or societies which are ratepayers of a property in the Whangārei District may nominate an elector to vote on their behalf, provided such elector resides outside of the Whangārei District.
Partners, joint tenants and tenants in common who collectively pay rates on a property in the Whangārei District may also nominate an elector to vote on their behalf, provided such elector resides outside the Whangārei District.
No elector has the right to have more than one vote for a particular election issue regardless of how many properties they own.