Voter enrolment slips below 2023 and 2020 levels
The Electoral Commission has reported a provisional enrolment rate of 93.6% for the 2026 general election. That is lower than the 94.7% recorded at the 2023 election, and below the 2020 level as well.
The enrolment rate is the share of people eligible to vote who are on the electoral roll. The provisional figure is the commission's current count and may change as enrolment records are finalised.
Young voters make up the group with the lowest rate. The provisional enrolment rate for 18- to 24-year-olds is 74.2%, down from 77% in 2023. RNZ reported that the rate for this age group had been just over 50% in July. It has since risen by more than 20 percentage points, which represents about 85,000 people.
The provisional rate for voters of Māori descent is 85.9%. A total of 603,968 Māori voters are enrolled. Of these, 272,513 are on the general roll and 331,455 are on the Māori roll, one of the two electoral rolls voters can choose between. The 2023 election recorded 567,012 Māori enrolments. RNZ reported that about 40,000 more enrolments would be needed to match the 2023 percentage.
Enrolment for the 2026 election closed at midnight on Sunday 25 October, according to the Electoral Commission's enrolment updates page.
Earlier in October, Labour leader Chris Hipkins raised concerns about disenfranchisement, meaning people being shut out of voting, in relation to the Electoral Commission's enrolment efforts before the deadline, as the New Zealand Herald reported.
