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    Te Kōwhiringa Pōti 2025 - Local elections 2025

Local Elections 2025 - Te Kōwhiringa Pōti 2025

Have your say on who represents you on the Kawerau District Council in the Local Elections 2025.

Elections are being held on Saturday 11 October 2025 to elect the Mayor and eight Councillors. There is also a poll on whether to keep or remove the Kawerau Māori Ward. 

To have your say, you must be enrolled to vote and choose your Mayor and Council. People enrolled by 1 August 2025, should receive their voting papers between 9 and 22 September 2025 at home in the post. If you enrol after 1 August 2025, you will need to make a Special Vote.  

If you wish to make a special vote, please fill out this form and Election Services will send you a special voting document, so you can vote in this year's election. Or you can come into the Council Office and complete an enrolment form, and then make a special vote. 


Daily Votes - Kawerau District Council 

What do your candidates stand for? Check out their 90sec videos here 

Nominated Candidates - Local Body Elections 2025


Basis of Election for the 2025 Local Elections

Notice of Day of Election and Poll on Māori Ward

Information for Candidates in Local Elections 2025 


To vote in the Local Government Elections for candidates standing to represent the Kawerau District Council, you need to be enrolled.

Who can enrol?

  • People who are 18 years or older
  • New Zealand citizens or a permanent resident who has lived in New Zealand continuously for 12 months or more at some time in your life
  • People who have lived at their current address for more than one month

If you are enrolled for parlimentary elections, you are automatically enrolled for Council elections. 

It's easy to enrol or update your enrolment details (like your address) 

If you don't live in Kawerau, but you pay rates on a property here, you can enrol using the ratepayer enrolment form.

Ratepayer enrolment online portal >

Ratepayer enrolment form for Ratepayer Electors

Note: The date to change electoral rolls has now paused until after 11 October 2025. 

If you are already enrolled, the date to change onto either the Māori electoral roll if you are of Māori descent, or general electoral roll for the Local Elections 2025 paused on 11 July 2025. For more information about the Māori Electoral Option or about enrolling to vote, contact the Electoral Commission.

If you are enrolling for the first time and are of Māori descent, you can choose to be on the Māori electoral roll or general electoral roll. 


Wātaka | Timeline

2025 Local Government Elections 

AnytimeCheck vote.nz or call 0800 36 76 56 so you are enrolled to vote or stand in elections
Tuesday 9 September - Friday 22 September Voting documents delivered by post to homes 
Tuesday 9 September - midday Saturday 11 October

Voting forms can be completed and posted back to Election Services; or dropped to the secure ballot boxes at the Council Office, District Library or New World Kawerau.

Tuesday 7 OctoberLast day for posting vote by mail. After this date votes must be returned to council's secure ballot boxes

Saturday 11 October

voting closes at 12 noon 

Election Day - Voting closes at midday 12 noon

Votes can be dropped to secure ballot boxes located at: 

  • Council Offices (8am to 12 noon)
  • District Library (10am to 12 noon)
  • New World Kawerau (7.30am to 12 noon)
16 - 22 OctoberDeclaration of election results and poll results 
Wednesday 29 OctoberElected Members' Inauguration Ceremony, Rautahi Marae, Kawerau 

Previous Local Elections information

Sub-pages

Learn more about your candidates standing for Kawerau District Council in the Local Elections 2025 

All candidates were offered to film a 90 second video which can be viewed here. Please note: the candidate profile statements are exactly as they were submitted with the candidate nominations. 

Mayoralty Candidates (1 Vacancy)

ION, Carolyn TUNUI, Faylene Karen Ngareta

Kawerau District-Wide Candidates (2 Vacancies)

NOMINATIONS are now CLOSED for the Local Elections 2025.

Etū mō tou hapori - Stand up for your community

Etū mō te Kaunihera - Stand for Council  

What makes an effective councillor? 

There are no formal qualifications required to stand for council as Mayor and/or a Councillor.

Here are all the publicly listed Meet the Candidates' events, that we are aware of. The information on this page is for information purposes only and Council is not involved in organising or running any events, to ensure we remain politically neutral, at all times.

Meet the Candidates' events help voters:

Voting paper returns 

Our daily votes page for the 2025 Kawerau District Council elections are updated on weekdays. These show the number and percentage of electors who have returned their documents in each ward, along with daily return rates and comparisons to the 2022 and 2019 elections.