Te Wāri Māori | Māori Ward
The Government recently passed the Local Government (Electoral Legislation and Māori Wards and Māori Constituencies) Amendment Act. This requires councils like Rotorua Lakes Council to either retain the Māori ward and undertake a binding poll alongside the 2025 local government elections or disestablish the Māori ward and either roll back to the 2019 representation model or undertake a shortened representation review.
Councils that have a poll in 2025 will retain Māori wards until 2028. The 2025 poll will determine if they are retained for subsequent local elections in 2028 and 2031.
To help the community understand, Rotorua Lakes Council will hold a series of webinars to discuss the legislation, outline the Government’s options and provide an opportunity for people to ask questions.
This series of webinars will be held this week (12 August) and the public can register by clicking on the following links:
- Tuesday, 13 August at 1pm (See Webinar recordings to view)
- Thursday, 15 August, at 4pm
Ask a question or seek further clarification about this kaupapa