Hutt voters could ditch FFP

Lower Hutt voters will decide whether to ditch the First Past the Post (FPP) electoral system at the next local body election.

Councillors resolved to hold a referendum between the status quo and the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system.

Hutt City Council electoral officer Bruce Hodgins said councils had the option to review their voting systems two years before an election. The council’s last electoral reform poll was in 2003, he said.

Holding the referendum at the same time as the elections would spread the cost of the exercise and reduce expenditure from $175,000 to $30,000.