NZF, ACT and National have made us Country only for Old Men
With the political right recycling the political corpses of Christmas Past, the cavalcade of political circus freaks now vying for election look more like a Weekend at Bernies remake than a Government.
This election it is Old Zealand vs New Zealand.
70% of Māori are under the age of 40 and that demographic bubble will cause immense upsets in the next election if they vote. The latest data from the Electoral Commission shows the majority of Māori are on the Māori rolls but it also shows an enormous demographic surge from young Māori enrolling onto the Māori roll in a way that changes the age dynamics of the Māori electorates.
The Rise of “Old Zealand”
New Zealand has been beaten by Old Zealand, Boomers who have benefitted from cradle to the grave subsidisation of their entire lives who pulled the ladder up behind them to doom every generation after them to a user pays culture.
This is the reason why the voting age must be dropped to 16 on a climate change burning planet, because Boomers won’t be here when the worst climate change hits in a decade.
What the Polling Data Shows
Bernard Hickey makes this point from the latest polling data…
Older vaccine-sceptic men prefer the coalition. Young women don’t.
A majority of male voters (54%) supported the centre-right, whereas 58% of female voters supported the centre-left. Voters under 40 years old were more supportive of the centre-left at 57%, whereas over 60 year old voters are more supportive of the centre-right, at 60%.
The Kaka
…Old Zealand are boomer white culture war males who react strongly at Trans, climate change, Māori, vaccines, the Treaty and are virulently pro-Israel and Trump.
They are culturally threatened, have property and are economically anxious.
They are driven by Social Media Hate algorithms.
They have power because they religiously vote to ensure their privilege.
The good news for New Zealand is that Old Zealand are a shrinking electorate.
Gen X: The Deciding Generation in 2026
In the battle between Old Zealand and New Zealand in the 2026 election, Gen X’ers are going to be the difference.
Look at the demographics.
Estimation for 2025 (or more recent)
If similar age proportions hold, then:
- If 60+ voters are ~28-30% of the voter roll, and
- Under-40 voters are ~35%,
then in a total roll of ~3.6 million enrolled voters (approx. current size), you’d expect:
- 60+ voters ≈ ≈ 1.0 to 1.1 million
- 18-40 voters ≈ ≈ 1.25 million
Polling data tells us that you are more likely to be a reactionary conservative if you are over 60 (and male) and are far more likely to vote Left if you are 18-40 and female.
There are around 1.3 million Kiwis aged between 40 and 60, that is Gen X, we are the ones who are going to be the decider in this election.
As a generation, do we want to side with the conservatives of Old Zealand or support New Zealand?
Thanks to our middle class woke activists during the social media cancel culture Lynch mobs, we drove many young men into the arms of the reactionary right, we need to show those men that there is a place on the Left for them.
Can New Zealand Outgrow Old Zealand?
Old Zealand trades in the spite and malice of culture war hate while in lockstep with the Billionaire class, the Banks, the speculators and the polluters, isn’t it time to break the grip of entrenched interests?
It’s time for Gen X to step up to help Millennials and Gen Z win the 2026 Election.
Old Zealand is dying metaphorically and literally. New Zealand is the future. Which one wins the Election?
Election 2026 will test whether Old Zealand continues to dominate, or whether a younger, future-focused New Zealand takes control.
Independent Media is more important than ever, especially in the lead up to the Election. TDB is the largest Left Wing Blog in NZ and we have been operating for 13 years now. We get zero funding g from NZ on Air and we don’t have no rich backers. If you can donate please do so here or directly into our account – 12-3065-0133561-56
Make it 16!
….. the voting age must be dropped to 16 on a climate change burning planet…” Martyn Bradbury
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/nzf-act-and-national-have-made-us-country-only-for-old-men/
The catch cry of the American war of independence was ‘No taxation without representation!’
Should our disenfranchised teenagers start pouring boxes of tea into the Watimata harbour? Or should they stop paying taxes?
Knowing how environmentally conscious our young adults are, the first option is probably not a goer.
Whether it is part time or full time, whether they are saving up for their university tuition, or their first car, without representation, teenagers should not be paying tax.
No taxation without rerpesentation, is a fundamental tenet of democracy. No government should be taking money out of anyone’s pocket without letting them have some say in the process.
We need more democracy not less.
Make it 16 needs to a serious election issue raised and debated in all the candidate election debates.
Representatives of ‘Make it 16’ should be invited and allowed to make their case before the candidates in every forum before the election.
Voting Age
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voting_age
…..In Brazil, the age was lowered to 16 in the 1988 Constitution, while the lower voting age took effect for the first time in the 1989 Presidential Election……
……In 2007, Austria became the first country to allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in national elections, with the expanded franchise first being consummated in the 2009 European Parliament election. A study of young voters’ behavior on that occasion showed them to be as capable as older voters to articulate their beliefs and to make voting decisions appropriate for their preferences. Their knowledge of the political process was only insignificantly lower than in older cohorts, while trust in democracy and willingness to participate in the process were markedly higher.[14] Additionally, there was evidence found for the first time of a voting boost among young people age 16–25 in Austria.[15]…..
[This last sentence is important. Studies have found that people who don’t vote the first time that they are elegible to vote make it a lifetime habit. At age 18, young people are leaving school and home, they are entering the workforce and university, they are starting their first adult relationships, they have a lot going on. You see the problem.] P.O.
cont.
…..Austria thus became the first member of the European Union, and the first of the developed world democracies, to adopt a voting age of 16 for all purposes.[27] Lowering the voting age encouraged political interest in young people in Austria. More sixteen- and seventeen-year-olds voted than eighteen-to-twenty-one-year-olds in Austria.[41]…
Make It 16: Lower the Voting Age
Make It 16
https://www.makeit16.org.nz
We are systemically being excluded from a democracy that seeks to create a world that we have to fix. Therefore, we need the vote, we deserve the vote …
… Make It 16 is a youth-led, non-partisan campaign fighting for the right of 16 and 17-year-olds to vote in Aotearoa.
We believe that young people deserve a say in decisions that shape their futures. Decisions in areas like climate change, education, mental health, government spending, and more.
At 16, we can work full-time, consent, pay taxes, drive, and make big life decisions. We’re at a stage in our life when we begin to think about our future and what we really want, but we’re shut out of the most powerful tool for change: voting.
Lowering the voting age will strengthen our democracy, create lifelong voters, and make politics more representative of all of us.
As voices of the future, we deserve to have our say.
Lowering the voting age is about fairness, representation, and strengthening our democracy for the future. As a movement led by rangatahi, we are advocating for a more inclusive democracy where the voices of young people are actually heard, respected, and taken seriously.
About us
Make It 16 is a non-partisan, youth-led campaign pushing for the voting age to be lowered to 16 in Aotearoa New Zealand. We’re a diverse group of young people from across Aotearoa who have come together to build a movement for stronger youth voice and representation for rangatahi.
Down with the Gerontocracy!
Stop the Wars
Save the Climate
Make it 16
Baby Boomers were born between 1946 and 1964, while Generation X was born from 1965 to 1980. This means Boomers are currently between 61 and 79 years old, and Gen Xers are between 45 and 60 years old.
“In the battle between Old Zealand and New Zealand in the 2026 election, Gen X’ers are going to be the difference”
The difference in what way you may ask. if the CoC wins (God help us) if Labour/Greens/TPM win then lets breakdown the demographics then shall we. It should be illuminating the percentage of Boomers AND Gen Xers that are represented on either side of the political spectrum.
Yes, but not just for ‘old men’, but bitter and twisted, bigoted ‘has-beens’ who regularly call IZB to whinge about everything they don’t like about NZ! Did they truly believe there were no ‘trans or gays’ in their day or in the armed forces? Because Winston is so old, he feels comforable and so in control of his tribe but all he is doing is trying to take us back to an era that has long passed. You know I don’t agree with some of your ‘boomer’ comments. My partner and I deliberately structured our retirement so we didn’t have to rely on the CS card, so pay our way re rates, doctor visits etc. That’s the main problem in NZ, so many want their cake and eat it too! I know several oldies who have multi million dollar properties who greedily use the CSC without any conscience and I have written to several MP’s re this factor. They should have to reverse mortgage and pay their way but you are right when you say many have had cradle to grave subsidisation and expect it! Way past time to right this anomalie! If NZ wants to move ahead, it needs to bring our country up with the play, not wallow around in the ‘good old days’! Our youth are our future.