A whistleblower inside the Electoral Commission claims the agency would not currently be able to run an election or byelection because of a lack of capable IT staff.
A significant restructure of staff has taken place at the commission and another media outlet has said 12 of the company’s 23 staff have departed in the months before and since a restructure.
The commission says there are 14 IT staffers and 14 vacancies, but two are leaving shortly while three staffers are on short term contracts.
It means there will be just six members left in IT who worked in the last election once those two staffers depart, according to the commission.
But the commission told 1News it was “absolutely confident” it could run an election whenever necessary.
Auditor-General’s recommendations
The claims come after the Auditor-General’s inquiry into the 2023 election found multiple minor errors in the final results and made seven recommendations for future elections.
One of those was to review the information technology systems that support the election process to ensure that they remain fit for purpose for both electorate and National Office functions.
The whistleblower said: “The political parties would not be impressed if they knew that the agency responsible for democracy in NZ has brought about major hurdles – blocks – that will affect [the election in] 2026 and its ability to deliver on actions to mitigate the issues reported by the Auditor-General.”
The Electoral Commission’s Deputy Chief Executive Lucy Hickman for Enterprise Services said: “We have made changes to our structure to ensure that we can continue to build our IT capability now and in the future. We have the ability to scale up quickly and are absolutely confident to run a by-election or election should it be required.”
And the Minister of Justice Paul Goldsmith, who has responsibility for the commission, said he hadn’t heard any concerns about IT staff.
He said it is “obviously our full expectation for the Electoral Commission that it’s always ready and prepared to hold byelections if they come along and also general and local elections”.
‘Up to scratch’
The whistleblower also claims that there are no cyber security staff in IT at the Electoral Commission.
However, the commission said it would “have adequate cyber security capability within the team”.
The Electoral Commission said all their systems are up to scratch.
“The IT function of the Commission is critical in providing an effective and impartial electoral system that New Zealanders can trust. As the commission has grown and technology evolved, so too has the expectation that we not only continue to build our IT capabilities but prepare for the future.
“We reviewed our IT function with these changing needs in mind, looking to update job descriptions to better reflect the team’s roles and responsibilities, and to build capability in our permanent team and reduce the use of contractors.
“Twenty positions were disestablished (including 9 vacancies) and 20 were created. All staff who were impacted could take part in redeployment processes. Five were offered redeployment and declined, with four taking redundancy and one resigning. One person declined to engage in the process, taking redundancy. “
The PSA union said IT staff have been poorly treated throughout the restructure process at the organisation.
Acting National Secretary Fleur Fitzsimons said IT experts have “raised warnings and alarm bells about what was proposed and they weren’t listened to”.
She added: “Our democracy is under threat. This rushed and poorly thought-out restructure will impact the integrity of our elections unless it’s fixed.”
Labour’s justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said he was concerned by the whistleblower’s comments.
“It’s a worry if they are losing staff hand over fist and, more importantly, losing expertise. It’s a real worry because an election could be called at any time.”
Webb said he believes the Electoral Commission’s restructure hasn’t gone well.
“If people were offered jobs and they didn’t take them then that’s a concern but that’s what you get when the culture of government is to gut the public service.”
