MEDIAWATCH: Willie Jackson is right – this Government risks being seen as rigging the 2026 election

Willie Jackson pulling no punches…

Labour MP Willie Jackson accuses government of rigging next election

Labour MP Willie Jackson has accused the government of trying to rig next year’s election through its move to block people from being able to enrol for 12 days before voting day.

The claim – made during Parliament’s general debate on Wednesday – goes further than Labour’s official position which has been that electoral changes would make it harder to vote.

Jackson also used his speech to criticise Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour as the “biggest dropkick of all” following Seymour’s use of the term to disparage late enrollers.

“I don’t know what’s more offensive,” Jackson told MPs. “The gerrymandering of our voting rules to rig the election, or the deputy prime minister referring to 600,000 people as dropkicks.”

Seymour last week told reporters he was “sick of dropkicks that can’t get themselves organised to follow the law”. More than 600,000 people enrolled or updated their enrolment details after writ day in 2023, including 110,000 on election day itself.

In a fiery speech on Wednesday, Jackson poured contempt on the “disgraceful, rotten, useless government”, accusing it of actively suppressing the vote and “vandalising democratic participation”.

He pointed to official advice which noted that young people, Māori, Pasifika and Asian communities would be disproportionately affected by the changes.

“It’s racist disenfranchisement,” Jackson said. “It’s a breach of democracy… this government risks being accused of rigging the next election.”

Jackson commended Attorney-General Judith Collins as “one of the most principled National Party members” for standing up to her “weak and useless leader” by warning that the voting changes breached human rights.

“She’s had the courage to call these voter suppression powers what they are: discriminatory.”

Jackson concluded his speech by taking at aim at Seymour, calling on him to apologise for his “disgraceful” description of some voters as dropkicks.

“He’s the most dangerous politician of the last generation… not only a disgrace as the deputy prime minister, but surely the biggest dropkick of all.”

…this is voter suppression!

This has the potential to disenfranchise not just those enrolling on election day, but the whole 12 days leading up to the election,. that’s hundreds of thousands of mainly young, Māori, Asian and Pacifica voters, 75% of whom lean left!

The last few elections have seen the Right lose 2 seats and the Left gain 2.

By gerrymandering the election process in a way that robs people of their chance of voting is the very last thing any Government should be doing.

By committing this, the Government open themselves up to allegations that they are rigging the election.

If the left were pulling a stunt like this, you’d be screaming!

 

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