Early voting for New Zealand's 2026 general election begins

New Zealand's 2026 general election advance voting began on October 26. According to the schedule published by the New Zealand Electoral Commission, advance voting will continue until November 7, and voters can go to designated voting locations to cast their ballots within the specified period. Under New Zealand's mixed-member proportional representation system, each citizen has two votes: one to choose the party they support, and the other to choose the candidate they support in their local electorate. The final election results will affect the party composition of the next Parliament and the formation of the government. The New Zealand Electoral Commission previously announced that more than 2,300 voting locations will be set up nationwide on the November 7 general election day, covering venues such as community activity centers, schools, shopping malls, higher education institutions, and Maori communities.