The Green Party is backing a move to lower the voting age to 16, being heard in the High Court this week.

This Member's Bill sets out the Green Party’s priorities for strengthening our democracy. Why are we doing this? We're proud of our MMP system and want to strengthen it so New Zealanders from all walks of life have the best possible access to their democratic system. Successive governments have ignored issues with our electoral system and Electoral Commission recommendations to fix these issues.   What are the Greens proposing? The Green Party wants to see substantive reform in five areas: 1. Strengthening...

Chlöe Swarbrick MP's Election Access Fund Bill was written to support disabled people in accessing and participating in elections and standing for political office. It establishes a contestable fund that will be administered by the Electoral Commission. The Fund may be used by any disabled candidate to cover disability-related costs of standing in a general election. These costs could include:  NZSL interpreter support for candidate forums, notetaker or transcribing costs, costs of translating material into braille, or travel costs to attend candidate...