Ka hiwa rā, ka hiwa rā – Māori representation in Kāpiti | Ngā kanohi Māori i Kāpiti

Council has agreed to establish a Māori ward for the local body elections 2025.

Kua whakaaetia Te Kaunihera kia whakatūria he rohenga pōti Māori mō te pōti ā-rohe 2025.

In 2020 Council, guided by mana whenua, resolved not to establish a Māori ward, but committed to reconsider the question this triennium. Your feedback will help inform their decision.

I te 2020, i whakatau te Kaunihera, e ārahina ana e te mana whenua, kia kaua e whakatū rohenga pōti Māori, engari kia whakaarohia anō mō tēnei tau pōti. Ka āwhina āu kōrero i tā mātou whakatau.

About a Māori ward | Mō te rohenga pōti Māori

Wards are a way for communities of interest to be represented at Council. Instead of grouping electors by location as for general wards, all electors on the Māori electoral roll in Kāpiti would vote in the Māori ward. Kāpiti Coast District Council currently has four general wards, with seven councillors: Ōtaki (1), Waikanae (2), Paraparaumu (3), and Paekākāriki–Raumati (1). We also have three districtwide councillors.

Mā ngā rohenga pōti e whakakanohitia ai ngā hapori whai pānga i te Kaunihera. Ka mahue te whakarōpū ā-whaitua i ngā kaipōti ki ngā rohenga pōti whānui, ko ngā kaipōti kei te rārangi pōti Māori ka pōti i te rohenga pōti Māori. I tēnei wā, e whā ngā rohenga pōti whānui me ngā kaikaunihera tokowhitu: Ōtaki (1), Waikanae (2), Paraparaumu (3), Paekākāriki–Raumati (1). Waihoki tokotoru ngā kaikaunihera ā-rohe.

If we established a Māori ward, people on the Māori electoral roll would vote for candidates standing for the Māori ward instead of a general ward. All other votes are the same. So, if a Māori ward is established and you’re on the Māori roll, you would vote for:

• a Māori ward candidate instead of a general ward candidate
• districtwide councillors
• the mayor
• your local community board member(s)
• regional councillors.

Ina whakatūria e tātou he rohenga pōti Māori, ko te hunga kei te rārangi pōti Māori, ka pōtihia ngā kanohi kei te rohenga pōti Māori, kaua ko rohenga pōti whānui. He rite tonu ērā atu pōti. Nō reira, ina whakatūria he rohenga pōti Māori, ā, kei te rārangi pōti Māori koe, ka pōti koe mō:

• te kanohi rohenga pōti Māori, kaua ko te kanohi rohenga pōti whānui
• ngā kaikaunihera ā-rohe
• te koromatua
• t/ō kanohi poari hapori
• kaikaunihera ā-takiwā

Process | Te tukanga

If councillors want a Māori ward established for the local body elections 2025, legislation requires them to make a resolution by 23 November 2023. A decision to proceed would trigger a representation review in 2024.

Ki te hiahia ngā kaikaunihera ki te whakatū he rohenga pōti Māori i te pōti ā-rohe 2025, e ai ki te ture, me whakatau i mua mai i te 23 o Noema 2023. Ina whakatauria kia koke, ka hua mai he arotake whakakanohi mō te 2024.

At the May 2023 Te Whakaminenga o Kāpiti meeting, Council asked mana whenua to consider their position on establishing a Māori ward for the local body elections 2025.

Next steps | Te kokenga

We will now hold a representation review in 2024 and the Māori ward will come into effect for the local body elections 2025. The representation review will look into all aspects of our district’s electoral arrangements, not just the Māori ward. This would involve formal consultation with our community next year.

Ka whakatū mai he arotake whakakanohi mō te 2024, ā, ka tū te rohenga pōti Māori mō ngā pōti ā-rohe 2025. Ka aro atu tēnei arotake ki ngā āhuatanga katoa o ngā ritenga pōti mō te rohe, kaua ko te rohenga pōti Māori anake. Me whai wāhi ōkawa mai te hapori ki ngā kōrero nei mō te tau e tū mai nei.

Te Whakaminenga o Kāpiti

Te Whakaminenga o Kāpiti is one of the most enduring partnerships between tangata whenua and local government in Aotearoa New Zealand. Our partners are the mana whenua (people with ‘authority over the land’) on the Kāpiti Coast. Te Whakaminenga o Kāpiti partners are Ātiawa ki Whakarongotai Charitable Trust, Ngā Hapū o Ōtaki, and Ngāti Toa Rangatira. Council is represented by the mayor and a councillor. Read more at Te Whakaminenga o Kāpiti.

Ko Te Whakaminenga o Kāpiti tētahi o ngā hononga tūroa i waenga i te tangata whenua me te kaunihera ā-rohe puta noa i Aotearoa. Ko te mana whenua (nō rātou te ‘mana o te whenua’) o Kāpiti ō mātou hoa. Ko ngā hoa o Te Whakaminenga o Kāpiti, ko Ātiawa ki Whakarongotai, ko Ngā Hapū o Ōtaki, me Ngāti Toa Rangatira. Ko ngā kanohi o te Kaunihera, ko te koromatua me tētahi kaikaunihera. Pānuihia he kōrero anō mō Te Whakaminenga o Kāpiti.

To reflect the importance we place on this partnership, and to ensure Māori representation on Council, we’ve appointed mana whenua nominees to our committees and sub-committees. They have voting rights on these committees and are non-voting participants at full Council meetings.

Hei whakaatu i te hiranga o tēnei hononga ki a mātou, ā, kia whai kanohi Māori i te Kaunihera, kua tohua he kanohi mana whenua ki ō mātou komiti, komiti whāiti hoki. He mana pōti ō rātou i ngā komiti nei, ā, he kanohi kore pōti rātou i ngā hui a te Kaunihera Matua.

Establishing a Māori ward would not affect this partnership or how it operates; it just adds a further dimension to Māori representation in our district. The main difference is that a Māori ward councillor would have voting rights at the full Council.

E kore e raru tēnei hononga, tōna whakahaere rānei i te whakatūnga o tētahi rohenga pōti Māori, engari he āhuatanga anō ka hua mō te whakakanohi Māori i tō tātou rohe. Ko te rerekētanga nui, ka whai matatika pōti te kaikaunihera rohenga pōti Māori i te Kaunihera Matua.

More information | He kōrero anō

If you have further questions, email our Governance team.

Mēnā he pātai anō, īmēra mai ki a mātou i Governance.