Please Vote

“Please vote.”

That from Shirley Papanui council candidates Ali Jones and Pauline Cotter who are reacting to the current voting return figures which show Shirley Papanui has the lowest turn out to date.

That’s despite the Christchurch City Council saying it has already processed a record number of total votes to date compared with number at the same five-day mark in the 2010 elections - 16,735 votes this time round, or 6.93 per cent of the total voting public, compared with 3.63 per cent at the same five-day mark in the 2010 elections.

Jones and Cotter are getting feedback from residents that suggests there are a few reasons why people haven’t yet voted.

“There are feelings of fatigue and a sense of hopelessness amongst some. From our campaigning, we are hearing that many want the current Shirley Papanui councillors gone and if people really want this outcome, they need to get out and vote,” Cotter says.

The candidates say a high voter turnout is more important this election than ever before.

“The next three years are critical to our city’s future and the last thing we need is to have a low turnout sending a message that Christchurch voters don’t care,” Jones says.

Although it is early days Cotter says it’s a good idea to vote as soon as possible so papers don’t get lost. And of course the upcoming school holidays will make things busy next week. 

Jones agrees and adds that encouraging people to vote and explaining why it is more important this election than ever before is something they both feel strongly about.

ENDS