We count, we matter – and we vote

More than 100 whānau showed they counted when they voted at DCM during October’s election, with many others voting in their own communities. The polling booth at DCM during election week capped months of activity designed to inform and motivate whānau to have their say – many for the very first time.

Pete was the very first person to vote in the General Election at DCM’s polling booth

Matthew Mawkes kneels beside a woman waiting quietly in DCM’s reception area. “Hi, have you voted?” he asks. “Have you come in to vote or are you here for something else? We have a mobile voting booth here, so you can vote right now if you want to, even if you’re not yet enrolled.”

Matt has been part of the team at DCM for a long time; whānau know him well, and most are used to seeing him when they have an appointment at one of DCM’s health services. However, for the week of the election Matt has taken leave from DCM, trained up to be an election worker, and pulled on the Electoral Commission’s orange high-vis vest so he can better support whānau to have their say in the 2020 General Election.

“The ultimate way whānau can have their voice heard is by voting, so that’s what we’re enabling there,” says Matthew, as whānau in Te Hāpai play guitars and sing, play chess, drink tea and eat donated scones.

But whānau face many barriers to voting, or even getting on the electoral roll. People who experience homelessness may not be able to read or write, and are often transient so their enrolment forms don’t find them. They also often don’t have any identification, which makes enrolment difficult. Perhaps harder to fix is that they can feel totally disengaged from politics and that their votes don’t count and their voices don’t matter.

“This is all part of our work to support the most marginalised to thrive,” says DCM’s Michelle Scott. “We are committed to ensuring that they have a voice, and that their voice is heard – in their community, in their city, and in Aotearoa New Zealand.” During the 2017 election, Michelle noted how many of the people DCM was working with did not vote, and how many barriers to voting they spoke of experiencing. “We began to talk about things we could do to ensure that their voice WAS heard in future elections – including a dream that they would be able to vote right here at DCM, a place they know and where they feel welcome and safe.”

And so the conversations began. The Electoral Commission shares DCM’s commitment to promoting participation in elections, particularly in communities that have lower rates of participation, and were keen to explore ways to work together. Not only have they partnered to enable whānau to vote at DCM, but they have also found ways to better support whānau to enrol and to understand the voting process. The Electoral Commission developed practice enrolment and voting packs, and representatives came into Te Hāpai to talk about the election and how to vote.

DCM’s challenge to whānau, displayed in posters and material all around DCM, has been “I count, I matter, I vote”. Kaimahi facilitated kōrero around both referendums as well as the various political parties’ policy platforms. Michelle says the sessions were “a lot of fun” and were busy with taumai voicing opinions, talking and listening to each other. Much of the activity at Te Hāpai over the weeks leading up to the election supported this theme. The regular poetry sessions with volunteer John were popular; John chose poems which prompted discussion – from the more general issues raised in “Voting is a Mission” to “Gerontophobia”, when whānau shared their thoughts on the ‘end of life’ referendum.

During those weeks, DCM kaimahi also assisted whānau to enrol, explaining the choice between the General and the Māori electoral rolls, and worked with the Electoral Commission to have a mobile booth set up at DCM for the week of the election.

“We were so glad the commission was open to that,” says Matthew. “It’s such a different environment here, it’s unique. It’s fair to say the most vulnerable people come here because they trust us, they don’t feel judged and know they’ll be looked after. We were very keen to offer voting here where they feel valued and comfortable, and know someone will assist them to vote without judgement. But we also wanted to encourage those who are now housed to vote in their own communities if they wished, and we spoke with them about how to do this.”

And it worked, with over 100 whānau voting at DCM over the four days the booth was open, and many more coming in to share the story of how they had voted in their own neighbourhoods. Many of them had ticked their voting papers for the first time in their lives.

“One whānau who was in his 40s had never voted because he never believed his voice would be heard. He came into DCM without any intention of voting, but we talked to him and discussed the issues and what the options are, and he went into the booth to enrol and vote,” says Matthew.

“That’s beautiful. It’s an example of how whānau trust us, that they will think, ‘Yeah, I’ll give it a go’. Otherwise, this man, among many others, would just not have voted.”

“Many of the first-time voters have been in and out of prison for years so have missed voting in elections. The change to the law which now allows those who are in jail serving sentences of less than 3 years to vote, will make a big difference to the participation of Māori men in particular,” he adds.

Trevor at DCM

Trevor fits that bill. At almost 60 years old he’s never voted, mostly because various stretches in prison left him disenfranchised, while his inability to read and write threw up another barrier. By the time of the 2020 election he has been out of prison for nine years and five months.

“I voted this time because DCM has done a lot for me over those years. I’d definitely be back in jail if they hadn’t helped. On the enrolment form you had to put down your occupation, and I put ‘retired inmate’ because that’s what I am. I owe a debt to society so that’s why I voted, and I’m going to vote all the time now, especially because I know someone can come into the booth with me and help.”

The referendum on cannabis also captured the attention of many whānau, who know better than most how a conviction for using the plant many of them consider medicinal can impact their lives.

Nelson is one such. At 37 he’s voted for his first time ever, put off until now by a general distrust of politicians. “They all talk the talk but don’t walk the walk. But the referendums have got me fired up – both the euthanasia one and the marijuana – I was always going to have my say on that. Marijuana helps me sleep, eat, manage pain and it helps with depression. For me it’s medicinal.”

Nelson says he now sees it as a way of having his say. “Now I’ve voted I feel like I can complain if I don’t like something,” he says.

Charlene is also 37 and has likewise never voted until now. “I always felt like my vote wouldn’t count. Like, it’s just one vote in a few million, so why would what I think matter?” She says she wouldn’t have voted without DCM’s support, and will now continue to vote. “I do feel a bit more empowered.”

Kevin has been coming to DCM for eight months and is now permanently housed. He’s also just voted. It’s not his first time, but he says he might not have voted if DCM hadn’t supported him to re-enrol, updating his address. “It’s so easy to do it here, and everyone knows me.”

The day before the official election day, DCM’s mobile polling booth packs up, the room it has occupied is transformed back into its usual purpose.

Voting week at DCM ends with a celebration, and an acknowledgement of the courage of whānau who have voted for the first time ever, or for the first time in a long time. This day has been chosen for DCM’s seasonal kai, when the community comes together to share food and mark the change of season, and this time the special meal has been provided by the Press Hall food court vendors. As ever, before tucking in, those gathered raise their voices in karakia and waiata. This seems especially appropriate this week when these voices have been exercised at the ballot box, playing their part in deciding who will lead the government and policies of Aotearoa New Zealand over the next three years.

DCM kaitautoko Lee-Anne Duncan spent time at DCM during election week.