Council retains Māori ward, poll to be held at 2025 election

Taupō District Council will hold a binding poll at the 2025 local body elections on whether to retain its Te Papamārearea Māori ward.

Taupō District Council introduced the Te Papamārearea Māori ward at the 2022 election, with two seats in the ward, to improve Māori representation on the council.

The coalition government recently made changes to local electoral legislation, reinstating the ability for communities to petition their councils for binding polls on Māori wards.

As part of the transition to the new arrangements, Taupō District Council had to decide whether to retain its Māori ward and hold a binding poll or disestablish the ward altogether and review council’s representation arrangements, which set out how many councillors are required to represent various parts of the district. At yesterday’s council meeting, councillors voted for the poll.

The poll will be held alongside the 2025 local body elections. Voting in the elections closes on 11 October 2025.

While the existing Māori ward will remain in place for the 2025 election, the poll outcome will apply to the 2028 and 2031 elections.

If the poll outcome is ‘yes’ then the Māori ward will remain in place for the 2028 and 2031 elections and the council must review its representation arrangements by 2031. If the outcome of the poll is ‘no’, then the council must do a representation review by 2028, but a Māori ward cannot be established for at least the 2028 and 2031 elections.

Polls and representation reviews both incur costs and there is no central government money being made available for this, despite it being a government directive.

Taupō District Mayor David Trewavas says the council made its views on its Māori ward clear in its recent submission on the changes to the electoral laws, which emphasised that having Māori wards allowed proportionate representation for Māori at the council table.

The decision to hold a poll rather than disestablish the Māori ward at the 2025 election means council staff can begin planning to incorporate the poll alongside the election arrangements for next year.