Big tick energy: Mayoral aspirant's push for ticks could render votes invalid
From reporter Hamish McNeilly:
Election advertising from a sitting councillor urging voters to give her a ‘tick’ may render their votes invalid.
Carmen Houlahan is again running for the Dunedin City Council and the mayoralty, under the slogan ‘Carmen 4 Change’.
However, some of the first-term councillor’s electoral advertising – including her website – has raised eyebrows, after showing a ‘tick’ next to mayor and council.
That is because Dunedin, like some other centres, uses Single Transferable Vote (STV) in voting for the mayor or city council.
That means you rank your preference by using numbers, not ticks.
Houlahan told Stuff voters could give her a “number one” ranking to avoid any confusion.
Confusingly, a tick – rather than a ranking system – is what you use for the Otago Regional Council, which uses First Past the Post voting system. Both councils’ voting forms were located in the same documents sent to voters.
While Dunedin City Council deputy electoral officer Clare Sullivan could not talk about specific candidates, she confirmed that putting a tick in a box on an STV voting paper could render a vote invalid.
Voting papers for the Dunedin City Council had specific instructions telling voters to rank their preferred candidates.
If a voter ticked only one person for the mayoralty, their intention was clear and their vote would be deemed valid – and counted accordingly.
“But if they have voted for more than one person ... it is too hard to determine which person is the preference.”
A vote would still be valid if a person did the opposite for the Otago Regional Council, so if a person ranked the required number of candidates – rather than ticked – their vote would be counted.
“We would know who you were voting for,” she said.
In 2019 the voter return in Dunedin was 45.6% (42,618 voting papers), excluding special votes.
In that mayoral race, there were 107 informal votes and 504 blank votes. There were 415 informal votes and 522 blank votes for council candidates.
Sullivan said informal votes were ones incorrectly filled out. While it was difficult to say why some people returned blank votes, it appeared some people voted for one council, but not the other.
“Information is unclear as to whether there is less informal, or blank votes under STV.”
But when votes were processed “we do look very carefully to understand the voter’s intention”, she said.
Poll: Should we be giving the green light to new mining projects? 💰🌲
The Environmental Protection Authority announced this week that a proposed mine in Central Otago (near Cromwell) is about to enter its fast-track assessment process. A final decision could come within six months, and if it’s approved, construction might start as early as mid-2026.
We want to know: Should mining projects like this move ahead?
Keen to dig deeper? Mike White has the scoop.
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53.5% Yes
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46.5% No
A riddle to start the festive season 🌲🎁🌟
I'm a fruit. If you take away my first letter, I'm a crime. If you take away my first two letters, I'm an animal. If you take away my first and last letter, I'm a form of music. What am I?
Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post if you know the answer and the big reveal will be posted in the comments at 2pm on the day!
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Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
‘Tis the season to not get scammed ...
As Christmas gift shopping moves increasingly online, scammers are ramping up their activity across the country.
Dunedin’s Investigation Support Unit is seeing more and more people fall victim to scams and other fraudulent activity, particularly on Facebook Marketplace.
There are a few ways to avoid the scams and keep yourself safe doing online trades this holiday season, says Southern District Service Delivery Manager Senior Sergeant Dalton.
🔒 “A good first step when looking to purchase something on Marketplace is to check when the seller’s Facebook profile was created. If it’s very recent, there is a higher risk that they have just created this account for a one-off fake item.”
🔒 Another important step is to make sure the seller’s profile name and bank account name match up. “We’re seeing a lot of scammers claiming their bank account name is different because it belongs to their partner or family member - that’s a huge red flag."
🔒 “When you’re selling, never trust a screenshot anyone sends you showing that payment has been made. Check your own bank account to make sure a payment has gone through."
🔒 “Quite frankly, it’s best for all parties to agree to pay, or be paid, for items in cash and in-person. Ideally in a public place with CCTV coverage."
🔒 "If you’re buying a car, check Carjam.co.nz to see if it’s stolen or if there’s money owed on it.”
A reminder: Suspicious activity can be reported on 105
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