Representation review
In 2024, the council conducted a representation review, which it is required to do every six years. The last review was in 2018.
The review is crucial to ensure compliance with the Local Electoral Act 2001 (LEA) and the principles outlined in the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA).
The process includes public consultation to gather feedback from the community, with changes in council representation to take effect for the next triennial elections. The council must consider several key factors, including fair representation, effective representation, and communities of interest. Factors such as population data, demographic trends and projected population growth are all considered.
The opportunity to provide feedback closed on Friday, 7 June 2024.
What we decided
Elected members
As part of the review, council decided to continue to have 14 elected members, six general constituencies and two Māori constituencies.
Constituency boundaries
On 24 April 2024, the council made an initial resolution on the representation review. Councillors voted 11-1 to modify the boundary of the Waihou constituency to include the Waihi and Paeroa rural areas—currently in the Thames-Coromandel constituency—to meet the requirements for fair representation.
Ten submissions on the proposal were received, with three submitters being heard during the 25 July council meeting.
In a 12-2 vote, Waikato regional councillors adopted the proposed change to the Waihou constituency. Approximately 2400 people from the Thames-Coromandel constituency will be incorporated into the Waihou constituency ready for the 2025 local government elections.
The decision was publicly notified on 2 August 2024, providing the opportunity for appeals to be lodged by submitters, with a final determination by the Local Government Commission.
The opportunity for submitters to appeal on the final proposal closed on Friday, 6 September 2024, and no appeals were received.
Looking ahead, council acknowledges that other constituencies may face similar issues in the coming years due to population growth and shift. While detailed 2023 census data won't be available until after the current representation review, the council intends to revisit arrangements as soon as legislatively possible to allow better alignment with insights from the census data. That is signalled to occur in 2027.