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  • Eight current or former Maori politicians from different political parties recount their leadership experiences, and describe the significant events in their journeys from their early lives to Parliament. Paula Bennett, Te Ururoa Flavell, Hone Harawira, Tau Henare, Shane Jones, Nanaia Mahuta, Hekia Parata and Metiria Turei give readers a unique glimpse into their personal and public lives. They share their dreams and aspirations, lessons learned and knowledge gained while making meaningful contributions to Maori development.

  • Statistics from the New Zealand Electoral Commission (2013) show that only 55% of those who indicate they are of Māori descent are enrolled on the Māori electoral roll. In this paper, we aim to find the statistical predictors of being enrolled to vote on the Māori roll versus being enrolled on the general roll. We present two models analysing demographic and psychological aspects of people’s subjective identification as Māori to predict enrolment on the Māori roll. In model 1, demographic variables from participants of Māori ancestry involved in a national probability sample (N=1,961) were analysed to predict enrolment on the Māori roll. In model 2, data from a subsample of people who identify as Māori (N=662) were analysed to assess the impact of both demographics and identity on electoral roll choice. The dimensions Higher Group Membership Evaluation (the extent to which someone thinks that being Māori is positive and part of their self-concept) and Higher Socio-Political Consciousness (engagement with Māori political issues) predicted enrolment on the Māori roll. Our findings will be useful for those looking to increase Māori roll enrolment and may also help to combat deficit-based arguments for the abolition of the Māori seats.

  • The guaranteed Mäori seats are a distinguishing and controversial feature of New Zealand’s democracy. In recent years, a number of reports, commentators and politicians have called for the seats to be abolished on the grounds that they are no longer “needed” in New Zealand’s proportional electoral system. These claims are usually grounded in principles of equality. This paper makes the opposite claim: that principles of equality create convincing and coherent justifications for the Mäori seats. Drawing on feminist theories of representation, particularly the work of Iris Marion Young, Melissa Williams and Anne Phillips, this paper argues that the Mäori seats provide crucial mechanisms of accountability that ensure the fidelity of Mäori representatives to their constituencies. This notion of accountability has been largely absent in debates about the Mäori seats and challenges arguments against the seats that are based solely on perceived “need” relative to proportionate presence.

Last update from database: 10/23/26, 4:11 AM (UTC)