Unlucky for some…
It has come to my attention that the Worker’s Party’s latest poster that has gone up around campus may be soon breaching the Electoral Finance Act.
According to an unnamed source The Workers Party has reached the threshold of 500 members. Rudimentary conversations with Workers Party member Joel Cosgrove has indicated that the party is currently awaiting validation from the Electoral Commission as to their efficacy as an accredited Political Party in the New Zealand Political Landscape.
If (or when) the Workers Party does become Validated the posters currently displayed around campus will be deemed illegal. The Electoral Finance Act states that in an election year all Party Advertisement (of which these posters undoubtedly are) will require an authorisation in the form of the current address of a validating party. The Latest Posters around campus do not have this.
According to Joel Cosgrove this is not just an issue facing the Workers Party – he claims that other campus political Parties – like Young Labour, have also reneged on putting addresses on their own posters. If this is true – and even if it’s not, all aspiring politicians should take heed of this post, and remind themselves of the new conditions and restrictions put upon them during an election year.
Keep your eyes peeled for a discussion of the EFA in Salient’s pages soon…
