Yes, if you belong to a political party or other group you may want to identify with them.
If you do have a specific affiliation, the electoral officer may require a letter of consent from the party, organisation or group giving its consent for you to use the affiliation.
An affiliation is described in section 57(3) Local Electoral Act 2001 as “an endorsement by any organisation or group (whether incorporated or unincorporated).”
No affiliation that might cause offence, or is likely to confuse or mislead electors, will be accepted by the electoral officer.
Iwi and hapū affiliation
Candidates cannot use the affiliation field to list whānau, hapū or iwi details. It is acknowledged whakapapa is a birth right and can be included in the candidate profile statement and other forums and activities.
Independent candidates
Candidates who are not part of a political party or group sometimes identify their affiliation as ‘Independent’ or leave as blank (if left blank, nothing will show alongside the name of the candidate on the voting document).
Party affiliations
A candidate requiring a specific party affiliation should have authority to adopt the affiliation from the party, organisation or group concerned (i.e. the electoral officer may require a letter of consent from the party, organisation or group giving its consent for the candidate to use the affiliation). This is a safety measure to avoid any illegal adoption of party, group or organisation affiliations.
Multiple affiliations
Situations may arise where the same affiliation is given by two or more candidates, or a candidate provides multiple affiliations. If a candidate provides multiple affiliations, an electoral officer may require multiple endorsement or confirmation letters.
Character length for affiliations
Note that there are length limits to a candidate’s affiliation. The voting document and candidate booklet allows 38 characters before the affiliation truncates.