Auckland Mayoralty Daily Early Vote Update: Um, someone in the MSM should be sounding the alarm right about now

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I’ve previously argued Aucklanders are weaponising their apathy and refusing to vote in such huge swathes that 2019 is rapidly becoming one of the worst turn outs in Auckland political history.

If Tamihere wins, this will be why.

Here’s what the early Auckland Mayoralty returns look like compared with the last 3 elections at the same stage in the election:

2010 – 20.4%
2013 – 12.6%
2016 – 15.18%

2019 – 11.29%

Yesterday raised the hope that Aucklanders were finally engaging and saw a jump in per day returns, but this blip looks to have been more about weekend posts clearing than a new trend of engagement.

At this level we will be lucky if 30% of Aucklanders bother to vote. Whoever wins will need to contemplate that reality and why so many see Local Council as a pretence of democracy rather than a tool of it. 

Someone in the MSM should be sounding the alarm right about now in terms of this turn out melt down.

TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com

In NZ politics, you can read it first on TDB or you can read it in the MSM a week later.

UPDATE: Oh look at that, the NZ Herald have caught up.

2 COMMENTS

  1. I wanted to vote for Tamihere, just because he seemed like a change of direction for Auckland council, but when it came out he was part privatising the water… it’s a deal breaker for me.

    That left pro TPPA, neoliberal Goff, who when he finally resigned from the Labour Party government managed to help them get elected. A person completely out of touch with most people living in Auckland because his vision only helps the 1%, construction shareholders, developers and criminals.

    Goff seemed the most smily when talking with Mr Zhang (the $100k donor to the National party, https://croakingcassandra.com/2018/10/31/on-the-background-of-zhang-yikun/) who Goff met many times, including at Goff’s house. I’m not sure, but Mr Zhang may not even speak English after living in NZ for 20 years. I may be wrong about that, but what have Goff and Zhang got in common and what do they talk about?

    Goff’s neoliberal dream seems to be to have more foreign investment in Auckland and make the Kiwi ratepayers pay for his growth vision. This starts with upgrading transport links using the petrol taxes that commuters paid for, not for commuters to use rail in Auckland of course silly, but transport for the airport commuters and a nice new bus station, so that it’s easier for foreign nationals turned NZ residents/citizens to come in and out.

    There is a serious lack of media interest in all the 2019 candidates, google it and there is virtually nothing on the other candidates that is easy to find! Not only that, the council information is terrible.

    Is it too much to ask that Auckland council publish detailed information on all the other candidates and questions of what they stand for and have a lot more engagement on candidates that is user friendly???
    https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/elections/Documents/final-candidate-list.pdf

    At least last time there was more choice of candidates, and Penny Bright to vote for as a protest and more media interest. This time, they have their two neoliberals Mayoral candidates and seem happy to lock the other candidates out.

    I think everyone should vote regardless, vote for the better councillors, the health board and a protest vote for Mayor….

    Voting closed 12 October, postal voting before that, so still time.

  2. The Chinese New Zealand television channel is saturated with John Tamihere mayoral candidate advertising. The only other mayoral candidate mentioned is John Hong and even he does not get anything like the airtime for Tamihere – literally every five minutes.
    I know this because my father-in-law is staying with us at present and the weather being as it is he spends a lot of time indoors watching Chinese television and Tamihere is on all day and every day. I have not seen or heard Phil Goff at all. A lot of what Tamihere promises to the Chinese community seems to be based on his and his team’s belief that Chinese voters are ignorant of how New Zealand’s local government actually works.
    My own vote went to Andaluca Vermunt( the Communist League candidate) because Phil Goff is Tweedledee and John Tamihere is Tweedledum and after a good deal of heart searching I decided to vote as my conscience directs me. However I keep wondering why the New Zealand Chinese business community are so bloody keen on Tamihere and not Goff. It makes me uneasy.
    I would like to add that I have been married to many years to beautiful and clever Tiger ( Manchu ethnicity and Chinese born) and that I spent many years living and working in Western China.
    It does not make me an’expert’ on China but it does mean I have often seen the ugly nature of Chinese political power and I do not want it following me home.

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