The road to MMP
First past the post - the road to MMP
The Royal Commission - the road to MMP
Criticism of the unfairness of the first past the post (FPP) voting system intensified after the 1978 and 1981 general elections. On each occasion the Labour Opposition actually secured more votes overall than National, but National won more seats in Parliament and remained in government.
During the 1981 and 1984 campaigns, Labour promised to set up a Royal Commission to look into a wide range of issues relating to the electoral system. Following Labour's victory in 1984, a Royal Commission on the Electoral System was established in early 1985.
Putting it to the vote - the road to MMP
1996 and beyond - the road to MMP
The three years following the 1993 referendum, before the first mixed member proportional representation (MMP) election in 1996, were ones of transition and uncertainty. The main parties tried to reposition themselves for the new environment, and a number of new parties emerged.
Royal Commission on the Electoral System report
Cover of the Report of the Royal Commission on the Electoral System: towards a better democracy, 1986.The Commission was established by the Labour government in 1985 and recommended that New Zealand adopt the Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) electoral system.
The full report is avaiable on the Elections NZ website.
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Elections on TV - Timeline
It took a while for television to make its mark on New Zealand elections, but since the 1980s the small screen has been the decisive campaign battleground. Politicians and parties seek to sway voters through slick TV advertisements and try to outsmart their rivals in live leaders’ debates. At the same time, campaign and election-night news coverage has become more extensive and lavish, especially since TV3 emerged as a rival to Television New Zealand (TVNZ) in 1989. Here we explore a few of the highlights – and lowlights – of New Zealand elections in the TV age.
David Lange celebrating 1984 election victory
Jubilant Labour supporters hoist leader David Lange into the air on the night of the snap election on 14 July 1984. As promised in the party's election manifesto, the following year the new government established a Royal Commission on the Electoral System, chaired by Justice John Wallace.
MMP poster
This poster from the 1993 referendum campaign was produced by supporters of mixed member proportional representation (MMP). In contrast to the first poll, which was held in 1992, the second referendum was accompanied by an intense propaganda war between the Electoral Reform Coalition (ERC) and the supporters of the first past the post system – the Campaign for Better Government (CBG).
Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand
Reference: Eph-D-POLITICS-1993
Further information and copies of this image may be obtained from the Library through its 'Timeframes' website, http://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz
Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa must be obtained before any reuse of this image.
MMP publicity material
As 1996 and the first mixed member proportional representation (MMP) election approached, the recently established Electoral Commission and other electoral agencies co-ordinated an extensive – and expensive – campaign of public education. This featured television, cinema, radio and newspaper advertising, school resource kits, videos, a website, a toll-free telephone information service and several million pamphlets.
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