General details about the election are available in New Zealand sign language, audio, large print, and e-text formats, and candidate statements are available in large print, audio and braille files for the first time nationwide.
Resource packs include specific information on enrolling and voting with additional needs, and there are more places to cast a special vote in Wellington than ever before.
Enrolment information is available on Vote.nz in several different languages including te reo Māori, NZSL, Arabic, Burmese, Chinese, Farsi, Tokelauan, Tongan, and Vietnamese.
Braille books of candidate statements for the Wellington City Council are available at six public libraries and Blind Low Vision NZ.
Braille reader Allan Jones says a big thank you to everyone concerned in making the braille pamphlets a reality.
“I have been a braille reader for 75 years and this is the first time I have been able to walk into my local library and sit down and read and decide for whom am I going to vote. In other years I have had to wait till someone has time to read the material to me.
“This has been an extremely pleasurable experience and I trust in the future it will extend to other parts of the country.”
Information is also available using the Alexa smart speaker, just ask Alexa to "enable My Information” then ask Alexa to "Play option 6".
Wellington City Deputy Electoral Officer Jennifer Parker says participating in elections is a democratic right and a hugely important function of our local democracy, so everyone should be able to take part.
“We are committed to making our information, services and facilities accessible to all Wellingtonians.
“We consulted our Accessibility Advisor, Accessibility Advisory Group, and the Ministry of Social Development’s Accessibility Service in developing our elections plan for 2022.
“This year we are doing more than we’ve ever done to ensure as many Wellingtonians as possible can have their say.
“That said, we’re always looking to improve in the accessibility space, and are always keen to hear feedback from Wellington’s disabled community, either directly or through the Accessibility Advisory Group, which meets regularly to help the Council to shape a great and accessible city where barriers to people with impairments are minimised.”
Election information for voters in additional accessible formats is available on the Council’s election section. We’re also providing ballot boxes at every Wellington supermarket, Council library and several other locations – and they're all on a handy map with a list of locations making voting for everyone even more accessible than before.
The Voting Hub on Manners Street will also be open until 7.30pm every night of the final week to make it easier for people to visit after work.
Vote
Friday 16 September: voting hub opened at Te Pokapū Hapori Community Centre 107 Manners St with special voting available
Monday 3 October: additional voting hubs open at Johnsonville (Waitohi), Karori, Newtown, and Ruth Gotlieb (Kilbirnie) Libraries
Saturday 8 October: voting closes at 12 noon
Results
Saturday 8 October: preliminary results out
Thursday 13 – Wednesday 19 October: final results out
Post-election
Friday 14 - Thursday 20 October: elected members take office (the day after final results are notified)
Wednesday 26 October: mayor and councillor inauguration and swearing-in ceremony
For more information visit our elections section on the Council’s website.