On Tuesday 26 October 2021, after considering the submissions received on 12 October 2021 on its initial proposal regarding the representation arrangements for the Council and the Bluff Community Board to apply for the local elections to be held on 8 October 2022 Council released the Final Proposal. This was open to appeal to 3 December 2021.
No appeals were received by Council meaning the final proposal is now operational for the October 2022 elections.
In October 2022 Invercargill, Bluff and our surrounding villages and localities will be voting for and as follows:
- 1 Mayor of Invercargill City- at large
- 12 Councillors- at Large
- 5 Community Board Members for Bluff- at large in the Bluff Community Board area.
All elections are at large meaning everyone gets to vote for up to 12 Councillors.
There is no Māori Ward in Invercargill, however Council has appointed two Mana Whenua Representatives, one from Waihōpai Rūnaka and one from Te Rūnanga O Awarua.
Read below to see how Council responded to the submissions it received on the Initial Proposal:
Final Proposal
Having considered the submissions and objections the Council has resolved:
That the following submissions be accepted for the reasons set out below:
- Those in support of the Initial proposal (or parts of it) as these will enable the residents of the Invercargill District to be represented most effectively in the 2022 elections.
- Bluff is a Community of Interest and needs to have effective representation.
- This is best achieved by retaining the Bluff Community Board.
That the following submissions be rejected for the reasons set out below:
- Submissions in favour of Wards – Wards will artificially divide the City into electoral districts that will have limited meaning to ensure effective access to elected representatives.
- To ensure compliance with the plus or minus 10 rules the rural / Bluff / Otatara ward would be unduly large for one person to represent.
- At large allows residents to speak to any Councillor rather than feeling they have to speak to their Ward Councillor.
Submissions as to Councillor numbers – Remain at 12 is the best fit for the City as it allows a greater chance of diversity on the Council. A reduction of numbers could see a less diverse Council. It is also in the average for a City the size of Invercargill.
Submissions as to Community Boards – Bluff is a Community of interest and needs fair and effective representation. A Ward is not able to effectively represent only Bluff, a Community Board is an effective means of providing the fair and effective representation. There was limited support to establish other Community Boards (7 of the 34 submissions) and there were no other Communities of Interest identified.
That no changes be made to the Initial Proposal adopted by Council at its meeting held 27 July 2021, and that Council determines that the following representation arrangements will apply for the triennial election of the Invercargill City Council to be held on Saturday 8 October 2022:
- To elect its Mayor and Councillors at large (no Wards).
- For 12 Councillors to be elected.
- To retain the Bluff Community Board (5 elected Board members and one appointed Council representative), with no change to Board boundaries.
What is a Representation Review?
A representation review looks at all aspects of how the residents of a city are represented on Council, including Community boards. This occurs every 6 years and is required by the Local Electoral Act 2001.
We used a community Panel as part of our review to gather feedback and ideas from our community.
You can find a copy of the Community Panel report here: Community Panel Representation Review Report 2021.
Its members were: Councillor Rebecca Amundsen (Chair), Evelyn Cook, Anna Ford, David Pottinger, Aditi Raj and Michael Skerrett.
