Far North people who are interested in the democratic process can get a job as part of the 2023 general election team.

The Northland electorate is expected to be a key battleground in the October 14 general election, with Labour’s Willow-Jean Prime winning the seat for the party for the first time ever from incumbent National MP Matt King.

It was also just the second time that National did not hold the seat after NZ First leader Winston Peters won it in a byelection in 2015.

All the polls are picking a tight election race across the country, and the Northland electorate is on a knife-edge. In 2020, Prime won the seat with 17,066 votes, just 163 ahead of King’s 16,903 votes.

Also in 2020, Labour won 19,997 party votes (43.6 per cent of the 45,830 votes cast) compared to National’s 12,496 party votes (27.3 per cent) as a red tide swept the country to see Labour elected to run the country without the need for a coalition partner.

Candidates confirmed so far for the Northland electorate are Prime (Labour), Grant McCallum (National), Mark Cameron (Act), Reina Tuai Penney (Greens), Shane Jones (NZ First) and Matt King (Democracy NZ).

Recruitment is now under way for the 2023 general election team, and Far North folk can take part.

“The Electoral Commission needs more than 20,000 people from all over the country to help us deliver the election,” said Electoral Commission deputy CEO Anusha Guler.

“This is a great opportunity to be part of the election team and support your community to have their say on October 14.”

The Commission provides training and support to people working on the election, and all jobs are paid. There’s a range of roles, from greeting voters in a voting place and issuing votes to helping with administrative tasks in an office.

“We’re looking for people who are organised, pay attention to detail and have great people skills. Whether you want to work for just a day or a few weeks, there are roles available to suit you,” Guler said.

“A voting place should reflect the community it serves and be run by local people. If you want to build your work experience and use your skills to help people vote, we’d love to hear from you.”

Applicants can register and apply for roles through work.elections.nz. Jobs are listed by electorate.

Pay rates for roles vary depending on the role, but range from $26 (plus 8 per cent holiday pay) to $33.80 per hour (plus 8 per cent holiday pay).

People can apply to work in a voting place, an electorate headquarter or both.

Voting place roles

Get paid to work on the front line of the election – from greeting voters to issuing votes and helping voters, to managing and assisting teams of voting place employees.

Electorate headquarter roles

Work at an electorate headquarters and be part of a team that is the backbone of the general election, providing leadership, administration support, and oversight of election and post-election activities.

What you’ll need to succeed

A variety of skills and experience are needed across voting places and/or electorate headquarters. If you have some of the below skills or experience, please get in touch:

Enthusiasm for democracy; quick learner, ability to follow instructions and get stuff done; attention to detail; experience working with a diverse range of people; planning and organising; relate well to people in your community; comfortable working with technology; able to use Microsoft Office (only required for some roles).