Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has announced the government is considering removing election day voter enrolment.
A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission told 95bFM background information on what election day voter enrolment is including that:
Election day enrolment was introduced for the 2020 General Election, so there have been two elections when it’s been in place.
It means people can enrol or update their details, and then vote, on election day.
Before 2020, people needed to enrol by the day before election day.
In 2023, about 110,000 people enrolled or updated their details on election day.
Anyone who enrols or updates their details in the month before election day needs to cast a special vote.
Minister Goldsmith's reason for looking at abolishing election day enrolment included; that few countries have this ability and the electoral commission does not have enough resources to deal with these special votes.
Opposition MPs, including Green Party Leader Chlöe Swarbrick has spoken out against removing same-day voting and enrolment, stating in a Press Release “any imposed barrier [to accessible elections] is rightfully open to serious criticism of voter suppression.”
Caeden asked political scientist at Victoria University Dr Lara Greaves (Ngāpuhi, Pākehā, Tararā) about the proposal and its resulting opposition.
They started by asking her to explain the issues with same day enrolment and voting.
Chris Fowlie and Milly talk all things green on Marijuana Media today. Are we legalising all drugs? What's in our papers? Does weed improve your memory? All your burning questions are answered here in Marijuana Media!
On What's Up with Marama Davidson, Rachel speaks to the co-leader of the Green Party about recent polling, AUKUS discussions, and goings on in the education sector. The Bard of Bollix chats orangutans and Roman dodecahedrons on The Mind Trench. We listen to a conversation with Blonde Redhead about their upcoming show in Aotearoa. Joseph Harper of the What Now team is dialling in to chat about Lil Gigs,the segment with wonderful Aotearoa musicians performing in kids spaces for New Zealand Music Month. Justine Sachs helps the listeners wade through employment relations and union queries on Red Dead Redemption. Whakarongo mai nei!
Playlist
Daisy Rickman - Howl
Jessica Pratt - Empires Never Know
Gregory Uhlmann - Apple Head
Marina Allen - Swinging Doors
Family Band - Shib's Disco
Voom - Martin Phillipps
Mercury Rev - Holes
Angus and Julia Stone - Cape Forestier
Kraus - Crystal Motors
Carlotte Day Wilson - Walk With Me
Earth Tongue - Grave Pressure
Pulp - Common People
Disciple Pati - The Boy Who Cried Woman
Shonnon Lay - Mirrors
P.H.F. - ENJOY
Blonde Redhead - Snowman
Mount Kimbie - A Figure In The Surf
CC:DISCO - Magic (Is In Tempo) - Midnight Mix feat. Jennifer Loveless
Sam Gendel & Sam Wilkes - SWEET FIRE
christoph el' truento - Pīwari (Gumboot Joe Version)
Erny Belle - Tutira Mai
Vera Ellen - You Are My Sunshine
Hovvdy - Clean
Pachyman - Goldline
Teenage Fanclub - Neil Jung
Awning - Benevolent
The Cat's Miaow - Make A Wish
Folk Implosion - Natural One
King Loser - Troubled Land
Elliot and Vincent - Buffalo [Live at Whammy for Fancy New Band 2023]
Earlier this week, the government announced a plan to invest $1.9 Billion dollars into corrections facilities across Aotearoa, which would be used to recruit and train staff, provide rehabilitation for inmates on remand, and the expansion of 810 new beds at Waikeria prison, which had previously been damaged during a prison riot in 2020.
For their weekly chat, Oto spoke to the Green Party’s Ricardo Menendez March to discuss the party’s take on the corrections investment. We also talked about the central bank’s recent Financial Stability report, as well as the Remuneration authorities decision to increase pay for MPs.
On April 17th 2024, amidst widespread international focus on Israel’s military operation in the Gaza strip, pro-Palestinian students at Columbia University in New York pitched tents on their campus's southern lawn, forming an encampment to protest against the university’s financial ties with companies associated with the state of Israel.
Despite a brutal crackdown on the protesting students, Columbia’s Palestinian Solidarity Encampment inspired the creation of 155 similar protest encampments in universities across the globe, with one such encampment having been planned outside the University of Auckland general library, organised by the University’s Students for Justice in Palestine group.
Despite the plans for an encampment, SJP reformatted the event to become a standard rally after the University threatened to call the police if an encampment be established, only allowing a general protest to be held as a form of compromise.
Oto attended the rally and spoke to members of Students for Justice in Palestine, as well as other students, attendees, and supporting faculty members who were there.
With nursing students completing 1100 unpaid hours of placement over their 3 years of training, placement poverty is increasing.
Many students are forced to quit their part time jobs to ensure they are able to attend all compulsory hours, resulting in students struggling to pay for basic necessities, such as rent, gas, utilities and groceries.
Rachel spoke to the New Zealand’s Nurses Organisation’s Kaiwhakahaere, Kerri Nuku, about the call for paid placements for nursing students to help end the placement poverty.
On the 19th of December 2022, Farzana Yaqubi, a 21 year old law student at AUT, was murdered by a man who had been repeatedly stalking her and sending her threatening messages on social media. In the months leading up to her murder, Farzana made multiple police reports with evidence of her experienced stalking, urging law enforcement to intervene. However, her reports were effectively disregarded and treated as low priority, as there are no official laws in Aotearoa that criminalise stalking.
Farzana’s murder triggered a call to the government from numerous women’s rights advocates across the motu to come up with more effective legislation to criminalise stalking and establish more effective preventative measures in law enforcement.
For this week’s Get Action! Oto spoke to Leonie Morris from the Auckland Women’s Centre, to discuss a petition calling for the official criminalisation of stalking.
If you're interested, you can sign the petition here:
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