New Zealand - December 2025

New Zealand’s parliament passed the Electoral Amendment Act on 16 December, removing the possibility for same-day voter registration and voting from prison, as well as increasing the maximum allowed anonymous political donation from NZD 5,000 to NZD 6,000. Voters must now register at least 13 days before election day. The Act also removes a requirement that the Electoral Commission contact voters only by post, bans the free distribution of food and provision of entertainment within 100 meters of a voting place, and allows for the automatic adjustment of limits on campaign spending for inflation. The government justified the restrictions on registration as necessary to speed up the vote-counting process. Civil servants at the Ministry of Justice did not support the removal of same-day voting. New Zealand’s Attorney-General agreed, and added that the ban on prisoner voting might violate the country’s Bill of Rights. The act received Royal Assent and came into force on 20 December.

Sources: Radio New Zealand, New Zealand Legislation