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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Electoral Act 1993

Elections - Offences at elections

199A: Publishing false statements to influence voters

You could also call this:

"Don't share false information to trick voters"

Illustration for Electoral Act 1993

If you want to influence how someone votes, you must not publish or share false information. You are doing something wrong if you publish or share something you know is false, to influence someone's vote. This happens during a certain time, which is the two days before the election and until the voting ends.

If someone published false information before this time, it is not against the rules if they did not draw attention to it or encourage people to look at it during the specified time. The specified time starts two days before the election day and ends when the voting closes.

When we talk about publishing something, we mean making it available to people in any way, such as on the internet, in a newspaper, or on TV. Publishing does not include talking to someone face to face. You can find more information about the rules for elections in the Electoral Amendment Act 2017.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM310074.

Topics:
Government and voting > Elections
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Part 6Elections
Offences at elections

199APublishing false statements to influence voters

  1. A person is guilty of a corrupt practice if the person, with the intention of influencing the vote of an elector,—

  2. first publishes or republishes a statement, during the specified period, that the person knows is false in a material particular; or
    1. arranges for the first publication or republication of a statement, during the specified period, that the person knows is false in a material particular.

      1. Subsection (1) does not apply if—

      2. the statement was first published before the specified period and remains available or accessible within all or part of the specified period; but
        1. the person did not, during the specified period, by any means,—
          1. advertise or draw attention to the statement; or
            1. promote or encourage any person to access the statement.

            2. In this section,—

              publish, in relation to a statement, means to bring to the notice of a person in any manner,—

              1. including by—
                1. displaying on any medium:
                  1. distributing by any means:
                    1. delivering to an address:
                      1. leaving at a place:
                        1. sending by post or otherwise:
                          1. printing in a newspaper or other periodical:
                            1. broadcasting by any means:
                              1. disseminating by means of the Internet or any other electronic medium:
                                1. storing electronically in a way that is accessible to the public:
                                  1. incorporating in a device for use with a computer:
                                    1. inserting in a film or video; but
                                    2. excluding addressing 1 or more persons face to face

                                      specified period means the period—

                                      1. beginning 2 days immediately before polling day; and
                                        1. ending with the close of the poll.

                                        Notes
                                        • Section 199A: replaced, on , by section 98 of the Electoral Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 9).