Constitution

New Zealand 1852 Constitution (reviewed 2014)

Table of Contents

Part 7. Corrupt and illegal practices

Subpart 1. Corrupt practices

215. Personation

  1. Every person is guilty of a corrupt practice who commits, or aids or abets, counsels, or procures the commission of, the offence of personation.
  2. Every person commits the offence of personation who—
    1. votes as some other person, whether that person is living or dead or is a fictitious person; or
    2. having voted at any election, votes again at the same election; or
    3. having voted at an election in any district at a general election, votes at an election in another district at the same general election.
  3. For the purposes of this section, a person shall be deemed to have voted if he or she has applied for a ballot paper for himself or herself, or has applied to vote as a special voter, or has marked a ballot paper for himself or herself, whether validly or not.
  4. Where the Returning Officer believes that any person has committed an offence against this section, the Returning Officer shall report the facts on which that belief is based to the New Zealand Police.

216. Bribery

  1. Every person is guilty of a corrupt practice who commits the offence of bribery.
  2. Every person commits the offence of bribery who, directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf—
    1. gives any money or procures any office to or for any voter, or to or for any other person on behalf of any voter, or to or for any other person, in order to induce any voter to vote or refrain from voting; or
    2. corruptly does any such act as aforesaid on account of any voter having voted or refrained from voting; or
    3. makes any such gift or procurement as aforesaid to or for any person in order to induce that person to procure, or endeavour to procure, the return of any person or candidates at an election or the vote of any voter,—

    or who, upon or in consequence of any such gift or procurement as aforesaid, procures, or engages, promises, or endeavours to procure, the return of any person or candidates at any election or the vote of any voter.

  3. For the purposes of this section,—
    1. references to giving money shall include references to giving, lending, agreeing to give or lend, offering, promising, or promising to procure or endeavour to procure, any money or valuable consideration:
    2. references to procuring any office shall include references to giving, procuring, agreeing to give or procure, offering, promising, or promising to procure or to endeavour to procure, any office, place, or employment.
  4. Every person commits the offence of bribery who—
    1. advances or pays or causes to be paid any money to or to the use of any other person with the intent that that money or any part thereof shall be expended in bribery at any election; or
    2. knowingly pays or causes to be paid any money to any person in discharge or repayment of any money wholly or in part expended in bribery at any election.
  5. The foregoing provisions of this section shall not extend or be construed to extend to any money paid or agreed to be paid for or on account of any legal expenses incurred in good faith at or concerning an election.
  6. A voter commits the offence of bribery if before or during an election he or she directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf, receives, or agrees or contracts for, any money, gift, loan, or valuable consideration, office, place, or employment for himself or herself or for any other person for voting or agreeing to vote or for refraining or agreeing to refrain from voting.
  7. Every person commits the offence of bribery if after an election he or she directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf, receives any money or valuable consideration on account of any person having voted or refrained from voting or having induced any other person to vote or refrain from voting.
  8. In this section the term voter includes any person who has or claims to have a right to vote.

217. Treating

  1. Every person is guilty of a corrupt practice who commits the offence of treating.
  2. Every person commits the offence of treating who corruptly, by himself or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf, either before, during, or after an election, directly or indirectly gives or provides, or pays wholly or in part the expense of giving or providing, any food, drink, entertainment, or provision to or for any person—
    1. for the purpose of corruptly influencing that person or any other person to vote or refrain from voting; or
    2. for the purpose of procuring himself or herself to be elected; or
    3. on account of that person or any other person having voted or refrained from voting, or being about to vote or refrain from voting.
  3. Every person commits the offence of treating who, being the holder of a licence for the sale by retail of alcohol (within the meaning of section 5(1) of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012), knowingly supplies any food, drink, entertainment, or provision—
    1. to any person where the supply thereof is demanded for the purpose of treating, or for any corrupt or illegal practice; or
    2. to any persons, whether electors or not, for the purpose of procuring the return of a candidate or candidates at an election, and without receiving payment for it at the time when it is supplied.
  4. Every elector who corruptly accepts or takes any such food, drink, entertainment, or provision also commits the offence of treating.
  5. Notwithstanding anything in this section, the provision of a light supper after any election meeting shall be deemed not to constitute the offence of treating.

218. Undue influence

  1. Every person is guilty of a corrupt practice who commits the offence of undue influence.
  2. Every person commits the offence of undue influence who—
    1. directly or indirectly, by himself or herself or by any other person on his or her behalf, makes use of or threatens to make use of any force, violence, or restraint, or inflicts or threatens to inflict, by himself or herself or by any other person, any temporal or spiritual injury, damage, harm, or loss upon or against any person, in order to induce or compel that person to vote for or against a particular candidate or party or to vote or refrain from voting, or on account of that person having voted for or against a particular candidate or having voted or refrained from voting; or
    2. by abduction, duress, or any fraudulent device or contrivance, impedes or prevents the free exercise of the franchise of an elector, or thereby compels, induces, or prevails upon an elector either to vote or to refrain from voting.

Subpart 2. Illegal practices

219. Payments for exhibition of election notices

  1. No payment or contract for payment may be made to any elector on account of the exhibition of, or the use of any house, land, building, or premises for the exhibition of, any address, poster, or notice that promotes or procures the election of a candidate or candidates at an election.
  2. Subsection (1) does not apply if it is the ordinary business of an elector to exhibit for payment posters and advertisements and the payment or contract is made in the ordinary course of that business.
  3. If any payment or contract for payment is knowingly made in contravention of this section before, during, or after an election, the person making the payment or contract and, if he or she knew it to be in contravention of this Act, any person receiving the payment or being a party to the contract is guilty of an illegal practice.

220. Providing money for illegal purposes

Where any person knowingly provides money for any purpose which is contrary to the provisions of this Act, or for any election expenses incurred in excess of the maximum amount allowed by this Act, or for repaying any money expended in any such payment or expenses, that person is guilty of an illegal practice.

221. Advertisements for candidates and political parties

[Repealed]

221A. Electoral advertisements

  1. Subject to subsection (2), no person shall publish or cause or permit to be published in any newspaper, periodical, poster, or handbill, or broadcast or cause or permit to be broadcast over any radio or television station, any advertisement relating to an election (not being an election advertisement as defined in section 3A) unless the advertisement contains a statement setting out the true name of the person for whom or at whose direction it is published and the address of that person’s place of residence or business.
  2. Subsection (1) shall not apply to any advertisement published or broadcast, or caused or permitted to be published or broadcast, by the Electoral Commission, or any other agency charged with responsibilities in relation to the conduct of any official publicity or information campaign to be conducted on behalf of the Government of New Zealand and relating to electoral matters or the conduct of any general election or by-election and which either contains a statement indicating that the advertisement has been authorised by that officer or agency, or contains a symbol indicating that the advertisement has been authorised by that officer or agency.
  3. Every person is guilty of an illegal practice who wilfully contravenes any provision of subsection (1).
  4. Nothing in this section shall restrict the publication of any news or comments relating to an election in a newspaper or other periodical or in a radio or television broadcast made by a broadcaster within the meaning of section 2 of the Broadcasting Act 1989.

221B. Display of advertisement of a specified kind

  1. During the period beginning 2 months before polling day and ending with the close of the day before polling day, the display of an advertisement of a specified kind is not subject to—
    1. any prohibition or restriction imposed in any other enactment or bylaw, or imposed by any local authority, that applies in relation to the period when an advertisement of a specified kind may be displayed; or
    2. any prohibition or restriction imposed in any bylaw, or imposed by any local authority, that applies in relation to the content or language used in an advertisement of a specified kind.
  2. In this section, advertisement of a specified kind means an advertisement displayed in a public place or on private property that does not exceed 3 square metres in size and that—
    1. encourages or persuades, or appears to encourage or persuade, voters to vote for a party registered under Part 4; or
    2. is used, or appears to be used, to promote or procure the election of a candidate; but
    3. does not include—
      1. an advertisement published in any newspaper, periodical, or handbill, or in any poster less than 150 square centimetres in size; or
      2. an advertisement broadcast by any television station or by any electronic means of communication.
  3. Nothing in this section limits or prevents the display before polling day of any advertisement relating to an election that complies with any prohibition or restriction imposed in any enactment or bylaw, or imposed by any local authority.

222. Procurement of voting by unqualified voters

Every person is guilty of an illegal practice who induces or procures to vote at any election any person whom he or she knows at the time to be disqualified or prohibited, whether under this Act or otherwise, from voting at that election.

Subpart 3. General provisions

223. Cinematograph films

  1. For the purposes of this Act, the exhibition of any cinematograph film shall not be deemed to constitute bribery or treating or an illegal practice, and any payment or contract for payment in respect of any such exhibition shall not be deemed to constitute an illegal practice notwithstanding that the film may be wholly or mainly an advertisement.
  2. For the purposes of this section, the expression cinematograph film or film includes any screen advertisement of any description.

224. Punishment for corrupt or illegal practice

  1. Every person who is guilty of any corrupt practice is liable on conviction to either or both of the following:
    1. a term of imprisonment not exceeding 2 years:
    2. a fine not exceeding—
      1. $100,000 in the case of a person who is a constituency candidate, party secretary, or registered promoter and who is convicted of any corrupt practice under Part 6A; or
      2. $40,000 in any other case.
  2. Every person who is guilty of any illegal practice is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding—
    1. $40,000 in the case of a person who is a constituency candidate, party secretary, or registered promoter and who is convicted of any illegal practice under Part 6AA or 6A; or
    2. $40,000 in the case of a person who is an unregistered promoter and who is convicted of any illegal practice under section 204B or 204D; or
    3. $10,000 in any other case.
  3. Subsection (1) does not apply in relation to a corrupt practice under—
    1. section 201; or
    2. section 43 of the Citizens Initiated Referenda Act 1993.

225. Persons charged with corrupt practice may be found guilty of illegal practice

Any person charged with a corrupt practice may, if the circumstances warrant that finding, be found guilty of an illegal practice; and any person charged with an illegal practice may be found guilty of that offence notwithstanding that the act constituting the offence amounted to a corrupt practice.

226. Time limit for prosecutions

  1. Despite anything to the contrary in section 25 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011, a prosecution under any of the following provisions must be commenced within 6 months of the date on which the return was required to be filed:
    1. section 205N(1):
    2. section 206N(1):
    3. section 209B(1):
    4. section 210D(1)(a):
    5. section 214G(1)(a).
  2. Despite anything to the contrary in section 25 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011, a prosecution under section 206ZE(1), 210D(1)(b), or 214G(1)(b) must be commenced—
    1. within 6 months of the date on which the prosecutor is satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to warrant the commencement of the proceedings; but
    2. not later than 3 years after the offence was committed.
  3. Despite anything to the contrary in section 25 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011, a prosecution against any person for a corrupt practice or an illegal practice must be commenced—
    1. within 6 months of the date on which the prosecutor is satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to warrant the commencement of the proceedings; but
    2. not later than 3 years after the corrupt practice or illegal practice was committed.

226A. Power to issue search warrants in respect of illegal practice

[Repealed]

227. Punishment for disqualified person voting

If any person, while his or her name is on the Corrupt Practices List for any district, votes or applies for a ballot paper or applies to vote as a special voter at any election in that or any other district, he or she shall, notwithstanding that his or her name may be on the main roll or any supplementary roll, be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $4,000, and his or her vote shall be void.

228. Reversal of disqualification procured through perjury

Where the name of any person is entered on the Corrupt Practices List for any district by reason of any conviction or any report by the High Court, and any witness who gave evidence against that person in the proceedings resulting in that conviction or report is convicted of perjury in respect of that evidence, that person may apply to the High Court, and that court, if satisfied that the conviction or report so far as it relates to that person was based on perjury, may order that the name of that person be removed from the Corrupt Practices List.

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