Monday, October 13, 2008



Election surveys

Last election, I ran a candidate survey, quizzing MPs about liberal issues. This election, I decided to give it a miss. Partly that was out of disappointment with the response rate to the last one, partly it was because there were few liberal issues on the policy radar. But an important factor was that I knew other people were doing it, and hitting the key issues that I wanted to ask about.

The first of these surveys is from The Hand Mirror, asking candidates about women's issues, including the gender pay gap, domestic violence, unpaid work, and reproductive rights. They've received their first response today, from United Future candidate Kelleigh Sheffield-Cranstoun - who seems to be surprisingly pro-choice. I guess ditching the Christians has improved the sanity level in that party.

The other survey is from Amnesty International NZ, and asks candidates where they stand on human rights issues, including Guantanamo, domestic violence, trade and human rights, and disarmament. You can read the candidates' responses here.