About Waitaki

Special voting Ōmārama

If you enrolled after 12 August 2022, or your voting pack is damaged or lost, you will need to cast a special vote. There are a number of locations around the Waitaki District where you can do this.

Electoral officers will be available to help with Special Voting and to collect voting papers at the Ōmārama Community Hall on Friday 7 October, 10.00am - 11.30am. Bring some ID.

Orange voting bins for voting paper drop-off will also be available at the Kurow Museum & Information Centre during normal operating hours until 3.45pm on Friday 7 October.

What is a special vote?

There are many reasons you could cast a special vote, including:

your name does not appear on the final electoral roll, but you qualify as an elector
you have chosen to put your name on the unpublished (confidential) roll
you have moved since the electoral roll was compiled (and have lived at your new residential address for one month or more)
you spoilt, lost or did not receive your ordinary voting document
you will be away from your residential address during the voting period
you are eligible to vote for some positions in the elections as a ratepayer elector (for a property you own but do not live in).

If you aren't on the electoral roll yet and you need to request a special vote, you'll need to enrol first, by Friday 7 October. Visit the Electoral Commission, call 0800 36 76 56, or freetext your name and address to 3676.

You will need to complete a statutory declaration when you cast a special vote. This is a legal requirement to protect against possible duplicate voting. The statutory declaration will be provided to the person casting a special vote, along with a special voting paper and candidate information booklet.

After voting closes, special vote declarations are forwarded to the Registrar of Electors for verification that the elector is eligible and has enrolled as a parliamentary elector.

On election day, Saturday 8 October, completed voting documents can be returned to Waitaki District Council main office in Oamaru, until 12 noon.

If you have any questions about special voting, please contact our Electoral Officer Carole Hansen on 03 941 8581 or chansen@waitaki.govt.nz.