"It's not about Race it's about Rights"

The right to vote is the foundation of democracy. The rules, policies and governance structures of New Zealand flow from the act of voting. The focus of this paper questions whether the process of democracy in local government is inclusive when there is a lack of engagement with and by Māori. Few Māori participate in local government elections and very few Māori are elected to district, city or regional councils. The deep rooted public sentiment 'no taxation without representation' extends to the lands of Tāmaki Makaurau, much of which was transferred by Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei in exchange for good governance, good health and good education practices. Today, local Māori as Treaty partners with major social and economic investments and interests in the region have a right to be represented on Auckland's soon to be established political decision-making local authority. Auckland's supercity will not, despite the recommendation of the Royal Commission on Auckland Governance, have dedicated Māori electorates or representatives. The popularised sentiment 'the one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority' characterises our government's refusal to safeguard Treaty of Waitangi principles and Māori rights to partnership, protection and participation in local government politics.