Triennial elections for all 74 cities, districts, twelve regional councils and all district health boards in New Zealand were held on 9 October 2004. Most councils were elected using the

first-past-the-post In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast the ...

method, but ten (of which

Wellington City Wellington City Council is a territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the country's capital city Wellington, and ''de facto'' second-largest city (if the commonly considered parts of Wellington, the Upper Hutt, Porirua, Lower Hutt and ...

was the largest) were elected using the

single transferable vote Single transferable vote (STV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which voters cast a single vote in the form of a ranked-choice ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vote may be transferred according to alternate p ...

(STV) method. It was the first time that the STV method was available; the change came through successful lobbying by

Rod Donald Rodney David Donald (10 October 1957 – 6 November 2005) was a New Zealand politician who co-led the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand, along with Jeanette Fitzsimons. He lived in Christchurch with his partner Nicola Shirlaw, and their thre ...

District health board elections

Elections for the 21 district health boards (DHBs) were first held alongside the 2001 local elections. The government had hoped to use the STV voting method from the start but this could not be achieved and in 2001, first-past-the-post voting (FPP) was used based on local wards. For the 2004 elections, the STV method was used. From 2004 onwards, DHB candidates have been elected at large (i.e. across the whole voting area).

STV voting method

Apart from the district health boards, ten district or city councils used the STV method for the 2004 local elections: Kaipara,

Papakura Papakura is a southern suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. It is located on the shores of the Pahurehure Inlet, approximately 32 kilometres south of the Auckland CBD. It is under the authority of the Auckland Council. Papakura is a M� ...

Matamata-Piako Matamata-Piako District is a local government area in the Waikato region of New Zealand. It lies to the east of the city of Hamilton. Geography The district encompasses the southern end of the Hauraki Plains and much of the Thames Valley, ...

, Thames-Coromandel,

Kapiti Coast The Kapiti Coast District is a local government district of the Wellington Region in the lower North Island of New Zealand, 50 km north of Wellington City. The district is named after Kapiti Island, a prominent island offshore. The pop ...

Porirua Porirua, ( mi, Pari-ā-Rua) a city in the Wellington Region of the North Island of New Zealand, is one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area. The name 'Porirua' is a corruption of 'Pari-rua', meaning "the tide sw ...

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...

, Marlborough,

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

, and the

Chatham Islands The Chatham Islands ( ) (Moriori: ''Rēkohu'', 'Misty Sun'; mi, Wharekauri) are an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean about east of New Zealand's South Island. They are administered as part of New Zealand. The archipelago consists of about t ...

. A private company, elections.com and its subsidiary Datamail, had been engaged by seven councils, eighteen DHBs, and one licensing trust with operating the STV elections. During the weekend of the elections, it was discovered that when voting papers were transferred to computer-readable data, not all data were correctly recorded. The Office of the Auditor-General became involved and tasked with confirming the election results. The final results for these elections became available in early November, nearly one month after the local election. The government initiated a

select committee Select committee may refer to: *Select committee (parliamentary system) A select committee is a committee made up of a small number of parliamentary members appointed to deal with particular areas or issues originating in the Westminster system o ...

inquiry.

Overview and list of elected mayors

North Island

* Bay of Plenty Regional Council (Environment BOP) **

Western Bay of Plenty District Council Western Bay of Plenty District Council is the territorial authority for the Western Bay of Plenty District of New Zealand. The council is led by the mayor of Western Bay of Plenty, who is currently . There are also 11 ward councillors. Refer ...

** Tauranga City Council ** Opotiki District Council ** Whakatane District Council **

Rotorua District Council Rotorua Lakes District or Rotorua District is a territorial authority district in the North Island of New Zealand. It has one urban area of significant size, the city of Rotorua. The district is governed by Rotorua Lakes Council, which is head ...

(part) **

Kawerau District Council Kawerau District Council ( mi, Te Kaunihera o Kawerau) is the territorial authority for the Kawerau District of New Zealand. The council is led by the mayor of Kawerau, who is currently . There are also eight councillors representing the distric ...

** Taupo District Council (part) * Gisborne District Council (unitary authority) *

Hawke's Bay Regional Council Hawke's Bay ( mi, Te Matau-a-Māui) is a local government region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region's name derives from Hawke Bay, which was named by Captain James Cook in honour of Admiral Edward Hawke. The region is ...

Wairoa District Council Wairoa District Council ( mi, Kaunihera o Te Wairoa) is the territorial authority for the Wairoa District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmas ...

** Taupo District Council (part) **

Hastings District Council Hastings District Council ( mi, Te Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Heretaunga) is the territorial authority for the Hastings District of New Zealand. The council covers the urban areas of Havelock North, Hastings and Flaxmere, and the surrounding settlemen ...

Napier City Council Napier City Council is the territorial authority of Napier, Hawke's Bay Region, New Zealand. The current Mayor of Napier is . Councillors Ahuriri Ward The Ahuriri Ward covers 36.19 km2 area of northern suburbs. It is currently represent ...

** Central Hawke's Bay District Council ** Rangitikei District Council (part) *

Taranaki Region Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth ...

al Council **

New Plymouth District Council New Plymouth District Council ( mi, Te Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Ngāmotu) is the territorial authority for the New Plymouth District of New Zealand. The council consists of the mayor of New Plymouth, , and 14 ward councillors. Composition Councillo ...

** Stratford District Council (part) ** South Taranaki District Council *

Manawatū-Whanganui Regional Council Manawatū-Whanganui (; spelled Manawatu-Wanganui prior to 2019) is a region in the lower half of the North Island of New Zealand, whose main population centres are the cities of Palmerston North and Whanganui. It is administered by the Manawat ...

(Horizons Regional Council; horizons.mw) ** Ruapehu District Council ** Stratford District Council (part) ** Rangitikei District Council (part) ** Wanganui District Council ** Manawatu District Council **

Palmerston North City Council Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

** Tararua District Council ** Horowhenua District Council * Wellington Regional Council (Greater Wellington Regional Council; Greater Wellington—The Regional Council) ** Masterton District Council **

Kapiti Coast District Council The Kapiti Coast District is a local government district of the Wellington Region in the lower North Island of New Zealand, 50 km north of Wellington City. The district is named after Kapiti Island, a prominent island offshore. The po ...

** Carterton District Council ** South Wairarapa District Council **

Upper Hutt City Council Upper Hutt ( mi, Te Awa Kairangi ki Uta) is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area. Geography The Upper Hutt city centre lies approximately 26 km north- ...

Porirua City Council Porirua, ( mi, Pari-ā-Rua) a city in the Wellington Region of the North Island of New Zealand, is one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area. The name 'Porirua' is a corruption of 'Pari-rua', meaning "the tide swe ...

Hutt City Council The Hutt City Council is a territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the city of Lower Hutt. Lower Hutt is the country's seventh largest city. The city borders Porirua to the north, Upper Hutt to the northeast, South Wairarapa District to ...

* **

Wellington City Council Wellington City Council is a territorial authority in New Zealand, governing the country's capital city Wellington, and ''de facto'' second-largest city (if the commonly considered parts of Wellington, the Upper Hutt, Porirua, Lower Hutt and ...

South Island

* Tasman District Council (unitary authority) *

Nelson City Council Nelson City Council is a unitary local authority. It has its headquarters in Nelson. History Nelson City Council was created in 1992. Local governance of Nelson began with Nelson Province in 1853, which covered the entire upper South Island ...

(unitary authority) *

Marlborough District Council Marlborough District Council ( mi, Te Tauihu-o-te-waka) is the unitary local authority for the Marlborough District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of tw ...

(unitary authority) *

West Coast Regional Council The West Coast ( mi, Te Tai Poutini, lit=The Coast of Poutini, the Taniwha) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand on the west coast of the South Island that is administered by the West Coast Regional Council, and is known co-offici ...

Buller District Council Buller District Council is the territorial authority for the Buller District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and ...

Grey District Council Grey District Council is the territorial authority for the Grey District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the ...

** Westland District Council *

Canterbury Regional Council Environment Canterbury, frequently abbreviated to ECan. is the promotional name for the Canterbury Regional Council. It is the regional council for Canterbury, the largest region in the South Island of New Zealand. It is part of New Zealand's str ...

(Environment Canterbury) ** Kaikoura District Council ** Hurunui District Council **

Selwyn District Council Selwyn District Council is the territorial authorities of New Zealand, territorial authority for the Selwyn District of New Zealand. The council was formed in 1989. A Selwyn County, New Zealand, Selwyn County Council previously operated in the are ...

** Waimakariri District Council **

Christchurch City Council The Christchurch City Council is the local government authority for Christchurch in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Christchurch. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Christchurch is Phil Mauger, wh ...

** Banks Peninsula District Council **

Ashburton District Council Ashburton District Council is the territorial authority for the Ashburton District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Isl ...

Mackenzie District Council Mackenzie District Council is the territorial authority for the Mackenzie District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island ...

Timaru District Council Timaru District Council ( mi, Te Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Te Tihi o Maru) is the territorial authority for the Timaru District of New Zealand. The council is led by the mayor of Timaru, who is currently . There are also nine councillors. Composition ...

** Waitaki District Council (part) **

Waimate District Council Waimate District Council ( mi, Ko te kaunihera ā rohe o Waimate) is the territorial authority for the Waimate District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of ...

* Otago Regional Council ** Queenstown Lakes District Council ** Central Otago District Council ** Waitaki District Council (part) **

Dunedin City Council The Dunedin City Council ( mi, Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Ōtepoti) is the local government authority for Dunedin in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Dunedin. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Dunedin is Jule ...

Dunedin Mayoralty Election, 2004 **

Clutha District Council Clutha District Council is the territorial authority for the Clutha District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and ...

* Southland Regional Council (Environment Southland) ** Southland District Council ** Gore District Council **

Invercargill City Council Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of ...

Stewart Island / Rakiura

* Southland Regional Council (Environment Southland) ** Southland District Council

Chatham Islands

Chatham Islands Council The Chatham Islands ( ) (Moriori: ''Rēkohu'', 'Misty Sun'; mi, Wharekauri) are an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean about east of New Zealand's South Island. They are administered as part of New Zealand. The archipelago consists of about t ...

(territory)

References

{{New Zealand elections, state=autocollapse Local 2004

Local elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct v ...

October 2004 events in New Zealand