Auckland Council votes to ditch postal voting after Papatoetoe fraud concerns

A whistleblower provided photos purportedly showing bundles of voting papers for the Manurewa Local Board election stolen from letterboxes.

The Auckland Council has voted to ditch postal voting and switch to a booth voting system that will cost ratepayers tens of millions of dollars.

The Governing Body made the decision today after the council had been rocked by a series of voter fraud scandals that have undermined public confidence in democracy.

Mayor Wayne Brown clashed with a local board chairman after an impassioned plea to abandon postal voting to restore integrity to the system.

Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board chairman Apulu Reece Autagavaia said irregularities uncovered in the 2025 Papatoetoe subdivision election had “permeated and infected” the result.

“Persons unknown” had stolen people’s ballot papers, robbing them of their democratic right to vote.

This had damaged confidence in the electoral process and undermined efforts to lift dire voter turnout figures, Autagavaia said.