Tepid recommendations from the 2014 general election inquiry

The Justice and Electoral Committee has made some recommendations arising from their inquiry into the 2014 general election. Overall it is barely tepid with no significant changes recommended despite massive problems in the area of enforcement (The Police simply don’t enforce electoral laws, and no one else is able to).

Here’s their major recommendations:

• Having more advance voting places available over 12 days
• Enabling voters of Maori descent to change between general and maori rolls every three years instead of every five as present. This is a bad recommendation as boundaries are done every five years and running the Maori option out of sync with the boundaries review means you may get some gerrymandered seats with very low or very high electoral populations. If however they also review boundaries every three years, then it is okay.
• Considering providing clarification or exemptions to the restrictions on broadcasting election programmes to address satirical, humorous, and creative programmes. (this is good)
• Prohibiting campaigning and the display of campaign material within, and in the immediate vicinity of, advance voting places. (this is good)

Overall it is more about what they didn’t recommend, such as finally sacking the Police as the electoral law enforcement agency after their incompetence or unwillingness to enforce electoral law in the 2005, 2008, 2011 and 2014 elections.