Using the Internet in New Zealand elections and support for e-voting

Abstract

The use of the Internet for voting and other related purposes is a key area of discussion worldwide, although only touched on in a few New Zealand publications. It is seen by many as something of a panacea – a ‘technical fix’ – that might repair the falling rates of participation in democratic elections, while others are horrified that it might subvert important aspects of democracy. In order to ascertain interest in e-voting in particular and also the broad pattern of the use of the Internet around elections, this article analyses portions of the data collected by the 2014 and earlier rounds of the New Zealand Election Study, together with data from other studies. As well as a considerable battery of questions relating to e-voting in the last two rounds, the New Zealand Election Study has had a measure of Internet access embedded within a question of Internet use in relation to the preceding election. This goes back to the 1999 survey round and so long-term trends can be documented.