Local authority elections 2007

Local authority elections throughout New Zealand are held every three years, and are conducted by postal vote. The elections are conducted under the provisions of the Local Electoral Act 2001, the Local Electoral Regulations 2001 and the Local Government Act 2002.

Voters decide through the election who the elected representatives of the Christchurch City Council, the Canterbury District Health Board, and ECan (Environment Canterbury) will be. The localeye website has comprehensive information about the election, including links to candidates’ websites.

Overview

• Voting documents have been posted to all eligible voters starting from Friday 21 September 2007.
• Electors send their completed voting documents back to the electoral officer using the pre-paid envelope included with the voting documents.
• The preliminary election results will be known at about 5pm on Saturday 13 October 2007. The results will be published on the Christchurch City Council website.
• The Christchurch City Council election will use the First Past the Post (FPP) electoral system.
• The Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB) elections use the Single Transferable Voting (STV) electoral system. Up to 11 members are voted on to the board, with up to four Ministerial appointments. More information is available on the CDHB website.
• Environment Canterbury elections are conducted under the First Past the Post (FPP) system. 14 councillors representing 8 constituencies will be elected.
• All resident voters and non-resident ratepayer voters whose names appear on the electoral rolls are eligible to vote in their local government elections.

Christchurch City electoral system

The Christchurch City elections for 2007 are held under the First Past the Post (FPP) electoral system.

Elections are held for the following positions:

• Mayor of Christchurch City
• Christchurch City Councillors (13 councillors in total, with two councillors from each of the six city wards, and one councillor from the Banks Peninsula Ward)
• Members of the Christchurch Community Boards (five members to be elected from each of the eight communities, totalling 40 members)
• Christchurch City members of the Canterbury Regional Council (eight city members, with two members being elected from each of the four city constituencies)
• Canterbury District Health Board members (seven members elected at large across the region)

Nominations

Nominations for all positions closed at noon on Friday 24 August 2007.

To be eligible to stand for election, a candidate must be:

• Enrolled as a parliamentary elector somewhere in New Zealand, and
• A New Zealand citizen

Outside Christchurch

Hurunui, Waimakariri, Selwyn and Ashburton Districts also run local authority elections in the Canterbury region.

Our online resources:

• localeye coverage of local elections
• Our community directory CINCH has local government listings of current councillors and health board members, service centres and community boards

Our Internet Gateway recommends:

• Local government site listings, including Christchurch City Council
• District and City Plans
• Canterbury District Health Board web site
• Regional councils, including Environment Canterbury
• Politics and Government listings
• Local Government New Zealand
• Electoral Enrolment Centre and iVote