Nearly half of 18 to 24-year-olds not enrolled to vote

Only 54 per cent of eligible 18 to 24-year-olds were enrolled to vote as of February 28, according to data from the Electoral Commission.

This figure is significantly lower than older age groups, with 82 per cent of 25–29-year-olds and 94 per cent of 60 to 64-year-olds are currently enrolled.

Make it 16 co-director Jamin Fountain says these figures highlight young people’s exclusion from democracy in New Zealand.

“It’s not that young people don’t want to be involved. It’s that the system isn’t made for us.

“Central Government need to promote [civic engagement] to young people otherwise they’re making decisions for us and not with us.”

This number is also low compared to this time of year in previous election cycles.

In 2020, 59.8 per cent of 18–24-year-olds were enrolled in February, rising to 61.8 per cent in February of 2023.

In a statement to TWN, Electoral Commission Deputy Chief Executive Operations Anusha Guler says that in the past this number has increased leading up to and on election day.

However, Fountain says recent changes to the Electoral Act, will impact this number, further inhibiting young voters.

These changes, which aim to improve the timeliness of the vote count will see voting enrolment close 13 days before the election.

The Ministry of Justice’s Regulatory Impact Statement noted that these changes could have negative impacts on participation among some groups.

“The scale of impact is difficult to estimate as it will depend on voter behaviour. Some communities, including Māori, Asian, Pasifika and young people, may be disproportionately affected based on previous trends in enrolments and special votes.

“In 2023, 33 per cent of 18 to 19-year-old voters enrolled or updated their details during the voting period. These trends may indicate that these communities are more likely to be affected by an earlier enrolment deadline”.

The Electoral Commission will be running a nation-wide Youth Action Plan to communicate with young voters in the run up to the election.

Guler says youth engagement will need to be a priority this year.

“We reach out to young people and first-time voters in lots of ways including targeted advertising, social media, news media, and in person when we attend community events, for example university campus events for orientation.

“We employ young people in our community teams, called Youth Advocates, as we know peer-to-peer engagement is a great way to encourage young people to enrol and vote”.

Voter enrolment for the 2026 election is open from now until October 25.

*AI was not used in the creation of this story.