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Overseas New Zealanders can start voting from Wednesday

By Thomson Reuters Oct 20, 2026 | 11:09 PM

WELLINGTON, Oct 21 (Reuters) – New Zealanders living or travelling overseas can vote in the ​country’s 2026 general ‌election from Wednesday, ahead of advance voting starting next week in New Zealand.

• New Zealand’s general election ‌will ​take place on ⁠November 7 with ⁠recent opinion polls showing no party, or likely coalition grouping, with a clear majority.

• New ​Zealand Chief Electoral Officer Karl Le Quesne said overseas ⁠voters could ⁠download their voting papers ​from the official election website and ​return them by uploading them ‌to the site.

• The Electoral Commission is also offering in-person or postal voting at ⁠64 overseas locations, including 10 in Australia, home to the largest share ⁠of ‌overseas-enrolled New Zealand ⁠voters.

• About 126,000 enrolled ​voters ‌have told the commission ​they are ⁠living overseas, compared with 92,600 in 2023. Nearly two-thirds of them are in Australia.

(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by ​Kate Mayberry)