THIS IS THE TESTING WEBSITE. IF YOU BREAK IT, LET WEB TEAM KNOW (ESPECIALLY IF YOU WORK ON THE LIVE/PRODUCTION SITE AND BREAK IT SOMEHOW)
Learn more nowTHIS IS THE TESTING WEBSITE. IF YOU BREAK IT, LET WEB TEAM KNOW (ESPECIALLY IF YOU WORK ON THE LIVE/PRODUCTION SITE AND BREAK IT SOMEHOW)
The key thing in STV voting is:
You do not need to rank all candidates, just those you prefer most.
Remember:
Voters rank candidates in order of preference. Under STV, you would write number “1” next to the name of your favourite candidate, number “2” next to your second favourite candidate and so on until you have ranked your preferences. You do not need to rank all candidates, just those you prefer most.
In an STV election, candidates must reach a certain number of votes to get elected. This is called a quota and is based on the total number of votes and the number of vacant positions.
You still only have one vote, but by ranking other candidates, your vote can be transferred. This will happen if your most preferred candidate is so popular that they don't need all their votes to meet the quota to be elected. Of course, if they're not as popular with other voters your favourite candidate may receive votes from another candidate who has already met the quota.
Make sure your vote is valid!
Tell your friends why they're the best, and make sure your friends don't make an invalid vote.
Rank cookies and cream "1" in your ballot - if you want a second option, rank that one "2". If you really really don't want strawberry (because eeewww), then make sure their box is as empty as their flavour.
Don't rank them!
If you have someone that you really don't want to get in, don't put anything next to their name. If you put anything like an "x" or "never" you will invalidate your vote, and your number 1 person also won't get your voice.
If you rank them last, they may still get a vote.
No. In New Zealand’s local elections that use STV:
Blank voting papers and informal votes are not counted when calculating the STV quota.
Only valid votes (i.e. papers where a 1st preference is clearly marked) are included in the quota calculation.
This means if you add anything extra to your voting paper it may not be counted at all.
By incorrectly marking your candidate preferences, you may make your preferences invalid. In the below examples writing "2" in twice means that officials can only be sure that your first preference is what you wanted, they have no way to know that Candidate C was who you really wanted as your third choice. Or if you have missed a number completely does this mean that you wanted Candiate B as your 3 preference?
A voting document that expresses these preferences—
Candidate A | 1 | ||
Candidate B | 2 | ||
Candidate C | 3 | ||
Candidate D | 2 | Not unique | |
Candidate E | 4 |
generates the following preferences for the purposes of counting votes:
First preference | Second preference | Third preference | Fourth preference | Fifth preference |
A | None | None | None | None |
A voting document that expresses these preferences—
Candidate A | 1 | ||
Candidate B | 4 | Not consecutive | |
Candidate C | 5 | ||
Candidate D | 2 | ||
Candidate E | 6 |
generates the following preferences for the purposes of counting votes:
First preference | Second preference | Third preference | Fourth preference | Fifth preference |
A | D | None | None | None |
https://legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2001/0145/latest/DLM57125.html
Your vote does not go to that candidate—ever.
If your higher-ranked choices are eliminated or elected, and you haven't ranked anyone else, your vote becomes “non-transferable” and stops being counted.
Example:
Let’s say you vote like this:
If both Strawberry and Chocolate are eliminated or have surplus votes already counted, your vote doesn’t transfer to Cookies & Cream, Banana, or Vanilla — because you didn’t rank them.
Your ballot becomes inactive from that point onward.
Not ranking a candidate = no chance your vote will help them.
The more candidates you rank, the more influence your vote has, especially if your top picks don’t make it.
No.
Even if you are only ranking one candidate, you still need to use the standard NZ numbering system from 1-1000. Anything else can make your vote invalid, and then it may not be counted at all.
Blank voting document means a voting document (ballot paper) where there is no evidence that the voter has attempted to indicate their intention to vote for one or more candidates on the voting document with respect to that election.
Local Electoral Regulations 2001 (SR 2001/145) (as at 01 April 2025) – Interpretation
Local Electoral Regulations 2001
Schedule 48 (1) – Interpretation
Informal voting document means a voting document—
Example:
Someone photocopies a ballot and submits it. Not valid because it wasn't officially issued.
Example:
In the STV system this means using the same number for multiple candidates, such as "Chocolate" and "Strawberry" both being ranked as "2". (The way the rule is applied in other voting systems is slightly different).
Examples:
Local Electoral Regulations 2001
Schedule 48 (1) Interpretation
A detailed explainer of how votes will be counted, the transfer system, and how we end up with our councillors from the NZ The Department of Internal Affairs.
A simple explanation of STV from ODT's Grant Miller "Flowing water analogy helps explain STV" from 2022 - although in 2025 we don't use "50%" but a calculation based on the number of votes.