Local Electoral Act 2001

Conduct of elections and polls - Candidacy

56: Name of candidate

You could also call this:

"What name you can use when you want to be a candidate"

Illustration for Local Electoral Act 2001

When you want to be a candidate, you must use a certain name. The electoral officer checks this name. You can use the name on your birth certificate. You can also use a name that is registered under subpart 6 of Part 2 of the Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 2021 at least 6 months before nomination day. You can use the name people commonly know you by, but it must not be offensive or too long. It must not sound like a title or rank, and it must not confuse people. The electoral officer decides if your name is okay. The electoral officer will not accept your nomination if they are not satisfied with your name.

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This page was last updated on 26 November 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM94334.

Topics:

Government and voting > Elections

55: Nomination of candidates, or

"How to choose someone to stand in an election"

57: Affiliation of candidate, or

"What it means for a candidate to be linked to a group or organisation"

Part 3Conduct of elections and polls
Candidacy

56Name of candidate

An electoral officer must not accept the nomination of a candidate if the electoral officer is not satisfied, by the evidence (if any) that the electoral officer requires, that the name under which the candidate is nominated is—
the name under which the candidate's birth was registered; or
the name registered for the candidate under subpart 6 of Part 2 of the Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 2021 at least 6 months before nomination day; or
the name by which the candidate was commonly known during the 6 months before nomination day, not being a name that—
1. might cause offence to a reasonable person; or
2. is unreasonably long; or
3. is, or includes or resembles, an official title or rank; or
4. is likely to cause confusion or to mislead electors.

Notes

Section 56(b): replaced, on 15 June 2023, by section 147 of the Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 2021 (2021 No 57).
Section 56(c)(iii): substituted, on 25 December 2002, by section 20 of the Local Electoral Amendment Act 2002 (2002 No 85).