The Electoral Commission is defending itself against criticism - including from New Zealand First leader Winston Peters - about the number of electoral booths open in rural parts of the country on October 14.
RNZ on Friday reported thousands of rural voters could miss out on casting their vote as hundreds of polling booths would be closed on election day.
The report said 2600 polling booths were being set up, with 800 open early. But it also reported 300 booths would not be open on polling day, many of which are in remote locations.
Peters called the closure or restriction of "hundreds" of rural voting booths on election day "an outrageous attack on the right to vote in our democracy".
"Booths being closed stopping people from having access to vote on October 14 should see the Chief Electoral Officer sacked immediately," he tweeted.
But the Electoral Commission told Newshub on Saturday reports of hundreds of voting places being closed in remote areas on election day were "not correct".
In every electorate, there are voting places that were open during advance voting but not on the election day, the commission said. There are others open both during advance voting and on election day, and others only open on election day, it said.
At this year's election, there were 265 voting places only open during advance voting, compared with 230 in 2020 and 305 in 2017.
"In nine rural electorates, the number of voting places open on election day this year is 603, compared with 664 in 2020, and 629 in 2017. In 2020, there were more voting place locations as a COVID-19 measure to reduce queues across the voting period."
Karl Le Quesne, the chief electoral officer, said there are many factors behind when a booth opens.
"We will have more than 2300 voting places open on election day, including in rural areas, so everyone can vote.
"There are changes to voting place locations in urban and rural regions every election determined by factors including the availability of locations, staffing levels, and local demand."
The RNZ story highlighted some criticism about a lack of communication about when certain booths would be open.
For example, one booth at Uruti School, north of New Plymouth, will only be open for six hours this Sunday. That's caused some concern some locals may be caught out, thinking they could vote there on election day.
The commission said voters should check the opening hours and locations before going to vote.
"You can put your address into a map at vote.nz to find your closest voting places and when they’re open. A list of voting places is in your EasyVote pack. Or you can call 0800 36 76 56 for information."
