We combined what they said to produce Voice of the People, a pre-election special feature drawn from the personal stories of 74 Kiwis, representing young and old, various ethnicities, rural and urban, well-off and struggling to get by.<\/p>\n
Mike Potaka-Osborne, Whanganui.<\/p>\n
Potaka-Osborne is a pensioner who believes the country is \u201cgoing downhill\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got more unemployment, they want to bring the super age up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Our nationwide interviews found the cost of living ranked miles ahead of any other issue as voters\u2019 biggest concern.<\/p>\n
But for most, the overwhelming sentiment wasn\u2019t worry about themselves, but about others.<\/p>\n
Leanne, 54, from Christchurch summed that up.<\/p>\n
\u201cPersonally, I\u2019m fine because I\u2019m not at the end of the scale that gets nailed by people … people I know struggle. I\u2019ve got four kids, none of it is easy for any of them, that needs to change.\u201d<\/p>\n
Compassion that\u2019s echoed by Sandringham\u2019s Jude Dirkson.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m alright because I\u2019m working but I know a lot of people who aren\u2019t and who are very employable, but there\u2019s just no jobs for them at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 71-year-old health coach says the country could do with a \u201cfew tweaks here and there\u201d.<\/p>\n
The questions<\/p>\n
All voters were asked the same set of questions \u2013 how they view New Zealand, how life is going for themselves and those around them, what issues matter to them this election, what they\u2019d like to see changed, who they plan to vote for and if they will split their vote.<\/p>\n
\u201cPersonally I\u2019m not well off,\u201d Kait\u0101ia relief teacher Peace Ryder, 23 says.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I\u2019m getting there. The struggle is real for my wh\u0101nau, for my community.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gisborne teacher Nikolai Mastrovic, 36, is worried for his kids, his community and the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are pretty good. People are finding ways to get through tough times and all of that. I\u2019m fortunate not to know a lot of people who are really struggling, but I am fearful for people who are vulnerable.\u201d<\/p>\n
At 80, Palmerston North\u2019s Mike Keenan is still doing what he can for his community.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy wife and I are retired in a freehold house, we\u2019re comfortable, our family is comfortable. I do a lot of work for a charity and I see homeless people almost every day, there\u2019s about 100 in Palmy, and it\u2019s them that are not getting help.\u201d<\/p>\n
In Dunedin, 27-year-old student Ben said: \u201cYou can judge a society by our lowest people, and I feel like we\u2019re not looking after them enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ben from Dunedin.<\/p>\n
Also in Dunedin, 32-year-old finance worker Christopher is looking for hope.<\/p>\n
\u201cPersonally, things are going good for me but I guess it\u2019s just lucky circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n
Retired now, Hastings\u2019 Liz Fogarty is still in contact with her former caregiver colleagues.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are struggling week by week to put petrol in the car. They have to choose between petrol and food so it\u2019s hard for them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Every single person spoken to by the Herald raised the cost of living as a major issue.<\/p>\n
Nelson strength and conditioning coach Jono says: \u201cWe\u2019re all in the same boat, doing it tough, trying to make ends meet and make it work, doing the best we can.\u201d<\/p>\n
Initially, Takapuna\u2019s Anna, a creative arts therapist, blamed her choice of career for the tough economic times.<\/p>\n
\u201cLife is wonderful apart from really struggling to afford stuff. I figured it was my own fault for picking this career. But actually, my family, friends, clients are in the same boat now. So, it feels like a society issue, not an individual one.\u201d<\/p>\n
W\u0101naka feels like a lucky place to live for Kenny Vaugh \u2013 but that doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s easy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re doing the best we can to survive, cutting back on frivolous spending,\u201d the 44-year-old food and beverage manager said.<\/p>\n
Titahi Bay\u2019s Bridie McLaughlin was visiting Taumarunui when the Herald spoke to her.<\/p>\n
The tertiary administrator feels like she earns what should be a decent wage \u2013 over $60k.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m on technically a good whack, but the other day I had $10 in my everyday bank account five days before payday, that\u2019s not great.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cUnemployment is up and homelessness is up and the health system is bad. There\u2019s too many issues.\u201d<\/p>\n
There are glimmers of optimism for Gisborne chef Sha Bryban, who thinks we are doing better than some countries.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m struggling, we\u2019re losing hours at work because people aren\u2019t coming out like they used to – incomes lower, cost of living going up, food getting more and more expensive. I don\u2019t think there\u2019s anyone out there that\u2019s not struggling in some way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Matamata horse rider John Boyack thinks the minimum wage needs to rise.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone seems to be struggling; I give the kids a helping hand when I can.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rhys Delamere, Taumarunui.<\/p>\n
Rhys Delamere owns the Trunk Coffee House in Taumarunui with his partner.<\/p>\n
With a constant grin on his face, he waves, laughs and giggles \u201cyou\u2019re next\u201d to mates as they pass him on the street.<\/p>\n
But when asked how he thinks the country is tracking, his smile fades away.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s shit. Look at what\u2019s going on. Look at who is in the Beehive.<\/p>\n
\u201cLife for me is good. We have a great life, but seeing other people in our country struggle, they aren\u2019t going to get ahead and it\u2019s sad.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need more money for our pensioners to survive. Warmer homes for our people. Not just M\u0101ori. Everyone.<\/p>\n
\u201cI see it a lot as a content creator as well. I have people reach out and ask if I have food for them, of course I will always come through for them. It\u2019s so f***d up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jobs, rent, groceries \u2013 the cost of living election<\/p>\n
Napier cafe worker Oliver Banks feels even having a job is a privilege.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a job that pays for rent and groceries, but it\u2019s hard to put away extra money each week. I spend all my time working and nothing left over to do things I want. I\u2019m working to stay alive and that\u2019s all I\u2019ve got.\u201d<\/p>\n
Colin Wright, 68, recently moved home to Christchurch from living in Japan and is shocked by how things have changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cJapan is expensive. But I have to pay more for groceries and rent than I thought I\u2019d have to coming home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Also in Christchurch, retail buyer Martin McDonald feels \u201cneutral\u201d about where the country is going, because so much is out of our control.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m in retail and that\u2019s not easy, there\u2019s not a lot of discretionary income around.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s taken three years for legal secretary Liberty to find a job, and after studying in Dunedin, then moving home to Auckland, she\u2019s now boomeranged back to Dunedin after finding work.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs someone who graduated not too long ago, it took me a long time to find a job that wasn\u2019t in hospo. In terms of the economy and jobs for young people right now, it\u2019s pretty dire.<\/p>\n
\u201cPersonally, I\u2019m alright, this job has definitely made a difference in terms of a reliable income.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sustainability, unemployment and ensuring minimum wage matches inflation are key issues for her.<\/p>\n
Costs soar on the Chatham Islands<\/p>\n
Wellington Bays candidates recently visited the Chatham Islands, one of the country\u2019s most remote spots.<\/p>\n
The issues there echo the rest of the country, while having their own unique challenges.<\/p>\n
Petrol is \u201cfour dollars fifty a bloody litre\u201d, Alan Harvey says.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a few concerns, main one is health system. Our hospital, so-called… having issues with a lack of funding. When it comes down to nurses having to start cleaning the health centre, that\u2019s not good, that\u2019s not their jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jack Damon, Chatham Islands.<\/p>\n
Farmer Jack Damon is worried about seabed mining impacting fisheries, which is a big industry for the Chathams.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of things that are impacting the Chathams that people in New Zealand are going through, but we seem to be a bit worse off. We have a whole lot of infrastructure money on the island for different things like airport, wharf, windmills, but a lot of people on the ground are worse off with the cost of living going up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Glenys Day has run a cafe and been an ambulance driver in her 54 years on the island.<\/p>\n
\u201cThings are so expensive here, as they are in New Zealand. My worry is how are the young people surviving? Cost of living is out the gate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Musician, film-maker and content creator AJ Atera is one of those younger islanders.<\/p>\n
He moved home to the Chathams two years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cI actually just had a good yarn about whether it\u2019s viable to move back here. There\u2019s a lot of cool stuff happening, despite all the bad, so I\u2019m super optimistic myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019s worried about the longer term cost of living problem for his generation – \u201chow we make money but also make generational wealth for our kids\u201d.<\/p>\n
Struggling to get by<\/p>\n
Back on the mainland, Cheryl Pile, 66, is a retired teacher who lives in Waipawa.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really hard to manage on super. I\u2019m a single woman, so I\u2019m really struggling. I have to do things like go to food rescue, wrap up with blankets, to make ends meet with that amount of money\u201d<\/p>\n
She was among locals who flocked to a recent candidates meeting in Waipukurau.<\/p>\n
Margaret Simeon is enrolled in the Ikaroa-R\u0101whiti electorate and went to the meeting to hear what the candidates had to say.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not very happy. The treatment of low-income members of our community, they\u2019ve been missing out to big money, to corporates.\u201d<\/p>\n
At 73, Angus McPhail is a retired farmer from Waipawa and feels lucky to own his own house.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m getting by. If I didn\u2019t have my own home, if I was paying rent, it\u2019d be pretty tight.<\/p>\n
He\u2019d like the retirement age raised because it\u2019s not affordable as it is.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s one of those things we have to do.\u201d<\/p>\n
McPhail says National is \u201cdoing the best they can under the circumstances\u201d and will continue to vote for them.<\/p>\n
Simeon is waiting to get a knee replacement.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur hospitals are miles away … We no longer have a real hospital in Waipukurau, which is something my grandmother was very staunch with helping us get, including the maternity hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n
Health comes close second<\/p>\n
Health was a very close second to cost of living in the issues raised by Kiwis, particularly in regional centres.<\/p>\n
Pharmacy student Charlette Gilbert, 20, was in Matamata when we spoke to her about her priorities.<\/p>\n
\u201cReducing inequities between M\u0101ori, more nurses, more doctors, more pharmacists, we\u2019re running pretty low.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chartlette Gilbert, Matamata.<\/p>\n
Justice and addressing people\u2019s basic needs are what 40-year-old Rotorua nurse Caleb Ihaka would like to see addressed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m privileged. I have a roof over my head. But every day I see people who are struggling to make ends meet and have their basic health needs met.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gisborne\u2019s Barbara Berwick came prepared for her chat with the Herald.<\/p>\n
At 86, she sits at her table, notes spread out, having clearly researched and contemplated party policies.<\/p>\n
\u201cGisborne Hospital needs more much funding, more money, more staff, more specialists based in Gisborne, we have a lot of visiting specialists, we need them based here.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnother serious issue for the district is the closure of the Waioweka Gorge and SH35, we need lots more resourcing for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Left-leaning voter Nikolai Mastrovic says health and education are his two biggest concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe education reforms that are being undertaken at the moment, I don\u2019t agree with most of what is happening. In health, I worry about capacity and access to health care.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d like to see a halt on the moves towards privatising those areas. I want to see politicians who want to invest in the right areas that help people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Education concerns<\/p>\n
Father of two David Sims is a teacher at Ruapehu College and he too is concerned about the scale of education overhauls and the direction of curriculum.<\/p>\n
But he\u2019s more worried about others.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m at the top of the scale as a secondary teacher. My concern is if we find it difficult to manage, how are others surviving?<\/p>\n
He\u2019d like to see counsellors in every high school to support students with the myriad of issues they now face.<\/p>\n
Retired now, Cheryl Pile still worries about the education system.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis Government has taken us back to some of the old ways. There\u2019s a lot of things I\u2019m concerned about that\u2019s happening in schools now, and I\u2019m one of those people who think teachers have the knowledge and they should make the choices about knowing the needs of the kids in their classes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The voters decide<\/p>\n
Not everyone we spoke to wanted to say who they\u2019d vote for.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m influenced by those who would like to assist those who struggle,\u201d Whang\u0101rei\u2019s Ron Ford, 76, says.<\/p>\n
Back in Taumarunui, Rhys Delamare isn\u2019t sure who he will vote for, but he knows he wants the current coalition gone.<\/p>\n
\u201cOut. Out with the old, in with the new.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bridie McLaughlin is among those looking for change.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m hoping for a different direction after the election.\u201d<\/p>\n
Liz Fogarty, Havelock North.<\/p>\n
Liz Fogarty also wants a change in Government.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve had knock after knock, the young people and the working people. The young people are our future.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some are swing voters, including Whang\u0101rei\u2019s Jan Love.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen National gets in the rich get a turn and then Labour gets a turn and the middle class gets a turn, let\u2019s hope the middle class gets a turn now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Others want National and the coalition to stay.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe country is going well, I really like the Government at the moment,\u201d Aucklander John Petrie says.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think they are trying to correct the errors of the last six years or so.\u201d<\/p>\n
Petone\u2019s Susan Koljin, who is in the marginal seat of Hutt South, said she wants National and candidate Chris Bishop to stay.<\/p>\n
She acknowledges things are \u201cuneasy\u201d and the cost of living tough.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I\u2019m putting my hands on National to get us through another three years,\u201d the 55-year-old fundraiser says.<\/p>\n
\u201cTraditionally I\u2019ve voted National because they are on the right track, But they will need Act, New Zealand First,\u201d Kerikeri\u2019s Angie Cree, 77, says.<\/p>\n
Australian Nick owns a painting business in Takapuna (and can vote here) and supports the current Government.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d like to see us be more united. It\u2019s party against party, not ideas versus ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Many are still unsure how they\u2019ll vote.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m still going to be sitting at my marae and doing the mahi for my people, the government changes, I don\u2019t really notice,\u201d M\u0101ori community leader Mutunga Rameka, 46, says in Kaikohe.<\/p>\n
Havelock North teacher Daniel Kilmister thinks things are going \u201cpretty good\u201d and he\u2019s undecided.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach party has good points and some things I don\u2019t agree with at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
Napier writer Jane Barr: \u201cI would love a lot more collaboration between the right and the left.\u201d<\/p>\n
Many feel disillusioned about who to vote for \u2013 \u201cI\u2019m going to go eeny meeny minie mo\u201d, Rhys Delamere says – and so-called minor parties feature as prominently in their answers as National or Labour.<\/p>\n