what if i don't want to vote

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Forums › Politics › what if i don't want to vote

miamiheatfan

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#93665 26-Nov-2011 09:58

Sorry, this may seem dumb.
But what if I just don't want to vote/turn up to the voting booth today ?

Will i get fined or go to jail?
I honestly cannot be bothered doing it. I don't like either parties and i don't want to turn up.

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#550197 26-Nov-2011 09:59

If we see a complaint from you in the next couple of years regarding the party that is in power, then we will come back at you pointing out your own fault.

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stuzz

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#550199 26-Nov-2011 10:01

Nope. It is not illegal to not cast a vote. The only thing is if you don't vote you should refrain from complaining about anything political for the next 3 years.

sleemanj

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#550204 26-Nov-2011 10:04

Voting is optional in New Zealand, you are not required to do so.

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alasta

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#550207 26-Nov-2011 10:11

You are legally obligated to be on the electoral roll, but you will not be penalised for failing to vote. However it's best to keep quiet about it so that you don't get an avalanche of moaners having a go at you for exercising your right to abstain.

alasta

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#550209 26-Nov-2011 10:13

stuzz: Nope. It is not illegal to not cast a vote. The only thing is if you don't vote you should refrain from complaining about anything political for the next 3 years.

People are perfectly entitled to complain about whatever they like. It's called freedom of speech.

miamiheatfan

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#550212 26-Nov-2011 10:18

thanks guys. Yea i found a line in the election site that says it's not compulsory too.
Sorry, shldve checked before posting.

And nope, wont complain, have not complained. I dont care about any parties tbh. So my mouth won't be complaining anytime soon. =D

My life has been the same with labour or national or whatnots , i fend for myself.

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stuzz

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#550214 26-Nov-2011 10:21

alasta:
stuzz: Nope. It is not illegal to not cast a vote. The only thing is if you don't vote you should refrain from complaining about anything political for the next 3 years.

People are perfectly entitled to complain about whatever they like. It's called freedom of speech.

Of course they can. I didn't say the op had to refrain from complaining.

codyc1515

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#550249 26-Nov-2011 11:13

alasta: You are legally obligated to be on the electoral roll, but you will not be penalised for failing to vote. However it's best to keep quiet about it so that you don't get an avalanche of moaners having a go at you for exercising your right to abstain.

This is something that I disagree with: why do you need to register (handing over a bunch of personal details) if you have no plans to vote?

alasta:
stuzz: Nope. It is not illegal to not cast a vote. The only thing is if you don't vote you should refrain from complaining about anything political for the next 3 years.

People are perfectly entitled to complain about whatever they like. It's called freedom of speech.

Exactly.

jbard

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#550251 26-Nov-2011 11:14

codyc1515:
alasta: You are legally obligated to be on the electoral roll, but you will not be penalised for failing to vote. However it's best to keep quiet about it so that you don't get an avalanche of moaners having a go at you for exercising your right to abstain.

This is something that I disagree with: why do you need to register (handing over a bunch of personal details) if you have no plans to vote?

Because it is required by law, you can easily be put on the unpublished role if you don't want your details out in the wild.

mxpress

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#550253 26-Nov-2011 11:19

freitasm: If we see a complaint from you in the next couple of years regarding the party that is in power, then we will come back at you pointing out your own fault.

mxpress

Gilco2

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#550256 26-Nov-2011 11:25

You have to enroll or you can be fined. You don't have to vote though. However even though we have freedom of speech, I feel you lose the right to complain about government if you don't exercise your right to vote

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Kyanar

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#550265 26-Nov-2011 11:40

jbard:
codyc1515:
alasta: You are legally obligated to be on the electoral roll, but you will not be penalised for failing to vote. However it's best to keep quiet about it so that you don't get an avalanche of moaners having a go at you for exercising your right to abstain.

This is something that I disagree with: why do you need to register (handing over a bunch of personal details) if you have no plans to vote?

Because it is required by law, you can easily be put on the unpublished role if you don't want your details out in the wild.

No you can't. It requires a court order (trespass notice, protection order, etc) in order to qualify for the unpublished roll.

I've always wondered if you could prosecute the Electoral Commission for violating the Privacy Act. The limited exceptions to the rule about involuntary disclosure of your personal details do not appear to cover the Electoral Roll.

jbard

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#550267 26-Nov-2011 11:46

Kyanar:
jbard:
codyc1515:
alasta: You are legally obligated to be on the electoral roll, but you will not be penalised for failing to vote. However it's best to keep quiet about it so that you don't get an avalanche of moaners having a go at you for exercising your right to abstain.

This is something that I disagree with: why do you need to register (handing over a bunch of personal details) if you have no plans to vote?

Because it is required by law, you can easily be put on the unpublished role if you don't want your details out in the wild.

No you can't. It requires a court order (trespass notice, protection order, etc) in order to qualify for the unpublished roll.

I've always wondered if you could prosecute the Electoral Commission for violating the Privacy Act. The limited exceptions to the rule about involuntary disclosure of your personal details do not appear to cover the Electoral Roll.

Ahhh ok just looked it up your right, didn't realise that.

Batman

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#550268 26-Nov-2011 12:00

some will vote for least damaging policies, some will vote for good measure, some won't. but one thing's for sure - some time between Monday and Christmas day the policitians will vote themselves a 5-10% pay rise ...

gzt

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#550277 26-Nov-2011 12:29

Kyanar: No you can't. It requires a court order (trespass notice, protection order, etc) in order to qualify for the unpublished roll.

Yup. http://www.elections.org.nz/enrolment/how-to-enrol/how-to-enrol-unpublished.html

I've always wondered if you could prosecute the Electoral Commission for violating the Privacy Act. The limited exceptions to the rule about involuntary disclosure of your personal details do not appear to cover the Electoral Roll.

The information is being used for the purpose provided. Long held practice is that a public roll of electors is fundamental to democracy to prevent electoral fraud.

Regardless of the privacy act - is there a general case that only nominated scrutineers (already exist during elections) should be the only access to this information? Well, maybe.

Not sure how though. Publication of the roll of electors is so fundamentally ingrained into the democratic process.

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