Kate Hawkesby: I'm none the wiser as to how this will go

I’m rallying the troops at the moment to early vote.  

By troops I mean family members, but also anyone who’ll listen. So far I think just my husband, my sister and I have early voted. Others are waiting til the last minute. I’m not sure what might happen last minute that could change your mind, short of a scandal of some kind I guess. But you either like the direction the country is going and want to keep it this way, or you don’t.  

At the heart of it we’re essentially voting for change or more of the same. My concern is the short memories of Kiwis as I said the other day, and how many will try to justify pepper potting their vote around like some kind of MMP pick and mix. That’ll only end in tears, probably mine if Winston has anything to do with it.

  

I do worry about people’s understanding of how government works that they want to appoint a troublemaker to the mix and think that’ll elicit change for this country, It won’t. it’ll just elicit chaos. And surely we’ve had enough of that. But, democracy is democracy, and we deserve what we vote for.  

But I am getting a small understanding of why people aren’t enthused and maybe don’t want to vote. They’re fed up. Sick of the negativity and angst and politicians bashing between themselves. Sick of the media attempting endless gotcha moments, sick of the aggressiveness, just sick of all of it.  

My sister was saying she went out to vote yesterday and there were five lovely people working at the polling station so delighted to see her because she was the only one there. Not another soul in sight, she’s in Christchurch. She felt like the only person early voting in her area. She said they couldn’t thank her enough for coming in. But she’s sick to the back teeth of all of it and has tuned out.  

She says this campaign feels like the comments section on Facebook, and reminds her why she’s not on Facebook. She said it’s just dissolved into a name calling, back stabbing, petty little hate fest, full of bitterness and negativity and it’s a total turn off. She can’t wait for it to be over, she said they’re all acting like children. The politicians that is, and the media. She said they’re all as bad as each other and she’s sick of them.  

And that sort of helps explain the disconnect by those who’re not engaged and not enthused. I mean I genuinely hope early voting numbers pick up, and people do exercise their right to vote, but I can see how the acrimony is a turn off. I think most campaigns descend into this kind of stupidity and pettiness but we’re so far into the weeds now and I just don’t think people care about the minutiae, I don’t think they care who did or didn’t turn up for a debate, or who said what about who, they just don’t care.  

They want to know how they’re going to pay their mortgage and how much petrol’s going to cost, and whether their local Dairy will continue to get ram raided and if their streets will ever feel safe again and whether they’ll ever get seen at A&E, or their kids will get a good education. 

They want the fundamentals to be right and the direction and vision for the country to be heading in the right way. But with this endless bickering and noise, all it does is drive people to the fringes – to the old punishment vote, or the ‘I’ll show them!’ vote, and those are all wasted votes. They’re not votes that’ll elicit fundamental change.  

So, 9 days out, it’s safe to say I still feel none the wiser as to how this could go.

Kate Hawkesby is a journalist and broadcaster who hosts the Early Edition show on Newstalk ZB.