​ ​ ​ ​ ​

Alert

Inner city parking changes are now live.

New street meters, virtual meters and the PayStay app. If you’re working in town – get a permit. Click here to find out what’s changed before you park. 🚗

Contact

Search

Enrol

Who can vote

You can enrol to vote if you:

  • Are at least 18 years old (or will be 18 on the last day for voting)
  • Are a NZ citizen, permanent resident, or resident visa holder, and
  • Have lived in New Zealand for one year or longer continuously at some point.

How to enrol to vote

To vote in an upcoming election, make sure you’re enrolled to vote and your details are correct.

Check or enrol

Go to VOTE.NZ to check if you are on the electoral roll, want to change enrolment details or enrol to vote.

There are several ways to enrol:

  • Enrol online at vote.nz
  • Free phone 0800 36 76 56 (they’ll post you a form)
  • Text 3676 with your name and address and the form will be posted to you
  • Pick up a form from Rotorua Lakes Council
Check your enrolment details - vote.nz

General Electoral Roll or Māori Electoral Roll?

If you’re of Māori descent and enrolling for the first time, you need to decide which electoral roll to be on – the general roll or the Māori roll. If you choose the general roll, you’ll vote for a candidate/s in a general electorate (candidates standing in the General Ward). If you choose the Māori roll, you’ll vote for a candidate/s in a Māori electorate (candidates standing in the Māori Ward). The electoral roll you are on applies for both general elections and local elections.

You can change electoral rolls up to 3 months prior to an election.

Non-resident ratepayers

If you own property in Rotorua but don’t live here, you can register as a ratepayer elector to vote in local elections. Check your eligibility or download an enrolment form below.

Check your eligibility – electionz.com

Why we have wards

Wards are the parts of a council area that have been determined by population and communities of interest.

In May 2021, Rotorua Lakes Council adopted the establishment of a Māori Ward. Through their determination on Council’s representation arrangements, the Local Government Commission established the Rural Ward.

In 2025, a binding poll was held as part of the 2025 Local Elections to determine if Rotorua would keep or remove its Māori Ward, with the result being that Rotorua would retain its Māori Ward in the 2028 election.

The purpose of a Ward is to ensure the communities they represent are fair and effectively represented at the decision-making table.

Share this
Was this information useful?
Loading...

Share this page

Sharing...