Hamilton is entering a new era of local government elections.

Voting documents will start to arrive in letterboxes from today for Hamilton City Council’s contest to represent our residents’ voices.

This election will be the first time Hamilton voters are using Single Transferable Voting (STV) to elect their mayor and councillors.

The STV system requires voters to rank the candidates in their order of preference – instead of placing ticks on your voting paper.

Chief Executive Lance Vervoort is emphasising the importance of knowing how to vote under the new system, so that everyone’s voice is heard.

“It really is as easy as 1,2,3 – and we have used STV in the past for District Health Board elections. We want every vote to count so give ticks the flick on the Hamilton City Council section of your voting document.”

To ensure a vote is valid, there a couple of things to remember:

• Don’t use the same number twice.
• Don’t skip a number.

And you don’t have to rank all of the candidates. To learn more about STV, check out this short video.

These elections are also making history as the first time voters on the Maaori Roll have the opportunity to elect two Kirikiriroa Maaori Ward councillors.

Vervoort is encouraging all voters to thoroughly research the candidates vying to be the mayor or a councillor before having your say on who should lead our city.

“With the introduction of the Maaori Ward, and a number of current councillors not seeking re-election, there will be significant changes around the Council table,” he said.

“And the next three years will pose major challenges for those responsible for making decisions on our city’s behalf. We need the right people in charge to deliver the best outcomes for Hamilton Kirikiriroa.”

To find out more about who’s in the running and what they stand for, go to https://www.yourcityelections.co.nz/candidates/.

Council’s next Your Neighbourhood event is taking place on Saturday 1 October in Garden Place where you can meet the candidates, learn more about Council and enjoy free entertainment for the whole whaanau. You can also drop your voting papers off at the same time.

Voting closes on 8 October. To find the location of your nearest ballot box or post box, have a look at our handy map.

Voting documents need to be put in the post by 5 October to be returned in time to be counted.

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