Māngere residents describe barriers to voting before New Zealand election

Māngere residents in Auckland are weighing whether to vote in New Zealand’s 7 November general election after about 38% of enrolled voters in the electorate did not cast a ballot in 2023, according to RNZ. Interviews published on 12 October describe distrust, family circumstances and competing pressures alongside concerns about housing, food and safety. Advance voting begins on 26 October, the Electoral Commission says.

RNZ puts Māngere’s 2023 non-voting figure against a national rate of 23% and describes the electorate as having one of the country’s lowest turnouts. Its interviews give individual accounts of why people missed an election or may vote this time; they do not measure how common any one explanation is across Māngere.

Why some Māngere residents did not vote

Hilly, 34, told RNZ she had never voted. She cited difficulty trusting others and a difficult life, but said starting a family had changed her outlook and that she planned to vote for the first time this year. Her account shows how a person’s circumstances can change between elections; her intention remains a plan until she casts a ballot.

Sandy said deaths in her family kept her from voting in the last election. She told RNZ she intended to vote this time and urged other people to make time for it. Her reason for missing 2023 differs from Hilly’s account, even though both women now say they want to participate.

The gap was especially large for one age group in RNZ’s figures: 46% of enrolled Māngere voters aged 30 to 34 did not vote in 2023. That statistic identifies a group with low participation, but the interviews cannot show which of the reasons residents described accounts for the age-group figure.

Housing, food prices and safety shape voting concerns

The residents RNZ spoke with raised a range of matters they wanted politicians to address, including housing and homelessness, food prices, safety, drug use, jobs, justice and support for older people. Those concerns give context to their voting decisions, but the interviews are not a ranking of priorities for the electorate as a whole.

Nancy told RNZ she struggled to afford food for her children and worried about people experiencing homelessness. Sandy also raised housing, saying maintenance of her social housing had been lagging. Their accounts describe costs and living conditions affecting their households, alongside the broader question of whether residents will vote.

Sohail Younus, who said he moved to Māngere in 2024, raised falling house prices, rising interest rates and job security. He also mentioned ram raids and unleashed dogs. His concerns span household finances and neighbourhood safety, illustrating the different issues residents brought to RNZ’s conversations before the election.

Al-Zehne told RNZ he was turning 18 this year and expected to vote for the first time, in support of his mother and grandmother. Scott, 50, put the case for participating more directly: “You don't vote, you don't get a say.” Their comments express personal reasons to vote, rather than a prediction of turnout in November.

What the 2023 result and 2026 timetable show

The Electoral Commission’s official-results page for Māngere records 29,713 votes counted in the 2023 electorate contest, including 17,297 candidate votes for Lemauga Lydia Sosene. The page says it is not the formal declaration of results. RNZ is the source for the 38% Māngere non-voting figure and the 23% national comparison; those percentages are not established by the opened result page alone.

The next opportunity to vote is approaching. The Electoral Commission schedules the general election for Saturday 7 November, with advance voting beginning on 26 October. Its timetable says enrolment closes at midnight on 25 October. Those dates matter both to people who missed a previous election and to prospective first-time voters such as Al-Zehne.

RNZ’s residents described intentions, frustrations and priorities before voting begins. Whether those who say they plan to vote do so, and whether Māngere’s turnout changes from 2023, will be known only after ballots are cast and counted. For now, the interviews show several distinct experiences behind the electorate’s low 2023 turnout figure, without establishing a single cause.