WCC, Electors' Rolls (electoral rolls) for district and other elections, and for polls

Descriptive Data

Archives Identifier00272Date Range1927-2025DescriptionThe electors' rolls list all people within the Wellington City Council boundaries qualified to vote in municipal elections. Only rolls for triennial council elections have been retained, except where these do not exist, and some rolls prepared for polls have been retained to cover similar time periods. Triennial elections are consistently covered from 1969 to 2025 (although there are some gaps).

Information on electoral rolls includes surname, christian names, occupation, address and details of qualification.

District electoral roll eligibility changed at several times over the period The rolls have had a variety of titles over the period. The rolls were prepared every few years and up until the 1940's were always a single volume. After that date, each roll appeared in two or more volumes, often with a supplementary list. From 1989 there were separate sections for each ward of the city (and a street index of wards), and for residential rolls and ratepayer (non-residential) rolls. The series also includes some rolls prepared for by-elections and special polls, where rolls do not exist for triennial council elections.

Qualifying to vote was a rather complex affair with individuals being able to qualify under four, or sometimes five, different primary categories. Qualification could be Freehold, Ratepayer, Residential or Occupier. An examination of the rolls indicates that almost all were in the Ratepayer or Residential categories. The precise nature of the Freehold and Occupier status isn't clear.

For a short period in the 1940's, an additional category of State Tenant was in use. In addition to people being entitled to vote because they fitted one of the above categories, in which case they were deemed to be qualified in their Own Right (OR), people could also qualify because of their spouse. Qualification by this method was termed 'in right'. Thus, a person could be entitled to vote as in Right of Husband (RH) or Right of Wife (RW). This later form of qualification was discontinued in the 1950's.Quantity (Linear Metres)3.34MediumFileSystem of ArrangementThere is a separate set of rolls for each election - local elections are held every three years. For each election there is a separate roll for each ward within the city. Where a by-election is held there will be a separate roll for that, which may be outside of elections every three year depending when the election was held. Collection TypeWellington City Council

Access Information

Restriction StatusOpen

Related Agencies

Controlling or Creating AgencyWellington City CorporationRelationship Date Range1870-

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WCC, Electors' Rolls (electoral rolls) for district and other elections, and for polls