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Where to vote

You can post your vote in an official orange ballot box at any of these Council facilities during opening hours:

  • Rolleston Council offices – Norman Kirk Drive
  • Te Ara Ātea – Tennyson Street
  • Selwyn Aquatic Centre – Broadlands Drive
  • Selwyn Sports Centre – Broadlands Drive
  • Rolleston Community Centre – Rolleston Drive
  • Leeston Library – Messines Street
  • Lincoln Library – Gerald Street
  • Lincoln Event Centre – Meijer Drive
  • Darfield Library – South Terrace
  • West Melton Community and Recreation Centre – West Coast Road

All these facilities will be open to receive votes up to 12 midday on Saturday 8 October.

Special votes

If you haven’t received your voting papers in the mail, you’ve recently changed address, or you’re on the unpublished roll, you can still vote by special vote.

Special votes are available at the following Council sites.  Just call in during normal open hours – you don’t need an appointment.

  • Rolleston Council offices – Norman Kirk Drive
  • Te Ara Ātea – Tennyson Street
  • Leeston Library – Messines Street
  • Lincoln Library – Gerald Street
  • Darfield Library – South Terrace

We’ll be open for special voting right up to the close of voting at 12 midday on Saturday 8 October.

On this page you can find all you need to know about voting in local elections, including how and where to vote, special voting and what to do if you haven’t received your voting papers.

You can also download our guide to voting in Selwyn elections [PDF, 712 KB], distributed with the Selwyn Times on 20 September.

For information about the candidates standing for election, see our Who is standing page.

Daily voting returns for Selwyn are available. Check this page to see what percentage of votes have come in. Daily returns are shown for the district, as well as for each Ward. This page is updated daily.

Voting in Selwyn elections

Voting in local elections is by postal vote. Voting packs are sent by mail to all enrolled electors – and they should arrive by Wednesday 21 September. You’ve then got three weeks to get your vote in – until 12 midday on Saturday 8 October.

Your voting pack will include a booklet with names, photos and information on the candidates, along with a short statement if they have provide one.

Your voting paper will specify which Council ward or Community Board subdivision you are in,  and list the candidates for that area.

Note: Your voting pack will also include information and voting papers for candidates standing for Environment Canterbury elections. Visit Environment Canterbury for more information about elections and candidates.

Casting your vote

Voting is a simple process. Just tick the circle next to your preferred candidate/s, put your completed papers in the Freepost envelope, and put them into the post. You can post these in any NZ Post postbox, anywhere in New Zealand. We recommend you post early – definitely by Tuesday 4 October, so that papers reach the Council by closing date on Saturday 8 October.

You can also drop your voting papers into an official orange ballot box at the Council offices in Rolleston, at any Selwyn library or at a number of Council facilities across the district. Check the map of locations [PDF, 347 KB] where you can post your vote.

We will also have ‘pop-up’ ballot box locations at some community markets, supermarkets and other locations across the district – bring your voting papers in and drop them in the orange box. Details of pop-up locations, dates and times are on the voting locations map [PDF, 347 KB].

Special voting

You may need to cast a ‘special vote’ – for example if:

  • you didn’t receive your voting forms in your letterbox.
  • you lost or damaged your voting forms.
  • you enrolled after 12 August 2022.
  • you are on the unpublished (confidential) electoral roll.
  • your enrolled address is out of date, and you have been living at a new address for a month or more.
  • you will be travelling during the voting period (16 September to 12 midday on 8 October 2022)

A special vote pack consists of:

  • a special voting document
  • a special voting declaration
  • two envelopes.

Although you can cast a special vote when you have not enrolled to vote, you will have to enrol by Friday 7 October 2022 for your vote to be valid.

How to cast a special vote

Casting a special vote is easy. Contact the Council by email:  electoral.officer@selwyn.govt.nz or call 0800 SELWYN (0800 735 996), or call in to the Council offices or any Selwyn library during open hours.

You can cast your special vote in person where you collect your papers, post your voting papers in, or drop your voting papers in to the Council offices or any Selwyn library, or other Council locations.

Voting system

Selwyn District Council uses FPP (First Past the Post) electoral system. Under the FPP, the candidate with the most votes wins. You get one vote and that vote goes to one candidate.

Enrolling to vote

You need to be enrolled to be able to vote. If you’re already enrolled you’ll get your voting papers in the mail automatically.

If you haven’t enrolled, or you have recently changed address, you can still enrol and vote but you’ll need to request a special vote – see the details above.

Find more information on our How to enrol page.

Voting is important

Voting in the local elections is important if you want to have your say on Selwyn’s future. Find out more about why you should vote.