Smartmatic, Design and Democracy & other Associate Organisations specialising in Election Engineering
Ryan made this Official Information request to Electoral Commission
Response to this request is long overdue. By law Electoral Commission should have responded by now (details and exceptions). The requester can complain to the Ombudsman.
From: Ryan
Dear Electoral Commission,
Can you please provide all information relating to the Commission's communication and collaboration with Smartmatic, including but not limited to;
Any and all approaches and proposals from Smartmatic to the Electoral Commission and or it's third party affiliates or contractors.
Any and all approaches and or proposals to Smartmatic from the Electoral Commission and or it's third party affiliates or contractors acting on behalf or in conjunction with.
Additionally, please provide a full breakdown of all financial interests, both national and international behind the following campaigns, including but not limited to, government and affiliates, corporate sponsors, individuals, not for profit groups, companies, politically affiliated organisations and or academics that added meaningful contribution by way of material input and or donation;
1. Vote local NZ
2. On the fence
Please provide information on any other campaigns authored or approved by the Electoral Commission for both the 2017 and 2020 NZ election including all assosiates and complete with the same corresponding information as requested herein.
Democracy & Design - Please provide a comprehensive breakdown on all engagements of this group by any and all govt agencies. I realise this will extend beyond the scope of your Commission however please forward as appropriate to facilitate the answer alongside that to be provided by the Electoral Commission - I trust my queries are clear however please advise at your earliest convenience should any aspect require clarification - time being of the essence.
Many thanks in advance.
Ryan
From: Electoral Commission Support
##- Please type your reply above this line -##
[1]Vote NZ logo [2]an official site of the New Zealand Electoral
Commission
Kia ora
Thank you for your enquiry. We’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
Your request has been assigned a tracking number, 49813.
If you have any more questions or comments, please reply to this email.
Ngā mihi nui,
Electoral Commission
Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri
Need help?
Get in touch with us and we'll help you find what you're looking for.
[3]Contact us [4][IMG]
[5]Electoral Commission
© Electoral Commission | [6]vote.nz | [7]elections.nz
[8]Facebook [9]Twitter [10]YouTube
This email is a service from Electoral Commission. Delivered by
[11]Zendesk
[PMZYQ0-X8EQ]
Reverse link: [12]unknown
References
Visible links
3. https://vote.nz/contact-us
4. https://vote.nz/contact-us
5. https://elections.nz/
6. https://vote.nz/
7. https://elections.nz/
8. https://www.facebook.com/VoteNZ
9. https://www.twitter.com/ElectoralCommNZ
10. https://www.youtube.com/ElectoralCommiss...
11. https://www.zendesk.com/support/?utm_cam...
12. https://help.vote.nz/hc/requests/49813
From: Public Enquiries
Kia ora Ryan
Thank you for your request.
We acknowledge receipt of your Official Information Act request regarding
‘Can you please provide all information relating to the Commission's
communication and collaboration with Smartmatic, including but not limited
to; Any and all approaches and proposals from Smartmatic to the Electoral
Commission and or it's third party affiliates or contractors. Any and all
approaches and or proposals to Smartmatic from the Electoral Commission
and or it's third party affiliates or contractors acting on behalf or in
conjunction with. Additionally, please provide a full breakdown of all
financial interests, both national and international behind the following
campaigns, including but not limited to, government and affiliates,
corporate sponsors, individuals, not for profit groups, companies,
politically affiliated organisations and or academics that added
meaningful contribution by way of material input and or donation; 1. Vote
local NZ. 2. On the fence. Please provide information on any other
campaigns authored or approved by the Electoral Commission for both the
2017 and 2020 NZ election including all assosiates and complete with the
same corresponding information as requested herein. Democracy & Design -
Please provide a comprehensive breakdown on all engagements of this group
by any and all govt agencies. I realise this will extend beyond the scope
of your Commission however please forward as appropriate to facilitate the
answer alongside that to be provided by the Electoral Commission - I trust
my queries are clear however please advise at your earliest convenience
should any aspect require clarification - time being of the essence.’,
received 19 November 2020.
Under the Official Information Act, we have 20 working days for response.
We will respond as soon as reasonably practicable within 20 working days.
Ngā mihi
Electoral Commission | Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri
PO Box 3220 | Level 10, 34 – 42 Manners Street | Wellington | 6140 | New
Zealand
Phone +64 4 495 0030 | Fax +64 4 495 0031 | [1]vote.nz | [2]elections.nz
From: Ryan
Date: Thu, Nov 19, 2020 at 7:58 am
Dear Electoral Commission,
Can you please provide all information relating to the Commission's
communication and collaboration with Smartmatic, including but not limited
to;
Any and all approaches and proposals from Smartmatic to the Electoral
Commission and or it's third party affiliates or contractors.
Any and all approaches and or proposals to Smartmatic from the Electoral
Commission and or it's third party affiliates or contractors acting on
behalf or in conjunction with.
Additionally, please provide a full breakdown of all financial interests,
both national and international behind the following campaigns, including
but not limited to, government and affiliates, corporate sponsors,
individuals, not for profit groups, companies, politically affiliated
organisations and or academics that added meaningful contribution by way
of material input and or donation;
1. Vote local NZ
2. On the fence
Please provide information on any other campaigns authored or approved by
the Electoral Commission for both the 2017 and 2020 NZ election including
all assosiates and complete with the same corresponding information as
requested herein.
Democracy & Design - Please provide a comprehensive breakdown on all
engagements of this group by any and all govt agencies. I realise this
will extend beyond the scope of your Commission however please forward as
appropriate to facilitate the answer alongside that to be provided by the
Electoral Commission - I trust my queries are clear however please advise
at your earliest convenience should any aspect require clarification -
time being of the essence.
Many thanks in advance.
Ryan
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[3][FOI #14166 email]
Is [4][Electoral Commission request email] the wrong address for Official Information
requests to Electoral Commission? If so, please contact us using this
form:
[5]https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[6]https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Conversation ID: 70ccf31e-29d3-11eb-925e-9fcc4779ac43
70ccf31e-29d3-11eb-925e-9fcc4779ac43 e211bcf
References
Visible links
1. http://www.vote.nz/
2. https://elections.nz/
3. mailto:[FOI #14166 email]
4. mailto:[Electoral Commission request email]
5. https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
6. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
From: Ryan
Hi Public Enquiries,
Many thanks & a clarification to assist with fulfilment of this request.
My request refers to the Design + Democracy Project being a research unit at Massey University’s College of Creative Arts, as opposed to the international groups of similar names who also conduct civil engagement programs around election time throughout the world.
My FOI request relates more specifically to the Electoral Commission’s involvement with the Massey unit and their sponsors.
Thanks again,
Ryan
From: Ryan
Dear Public Enquiries,
Can you please ensure Local Government NZ is included in this request as I understand they are responsible for local elections. I would have sent specific request however there is no current body supplied within your database I could see to address my request.
Please confirm LGNZ are covered as part of this request, or advise if I need to resubmit to LGNZ or other appropriate agency to facilitate a full and transparent answer.
Sincerely & with thanks.
Ryan
From: Benjamin Baker
Kia ora Ryan
LGNZ is a separate organisation to the Electoral Commission. As you will
know, the Electoral Commission does not run local elections. It is not
clear what you mean by “current body supplied within your database”.
We will be in touch with a response to your OIA request in due course.
Benjamin
Electoral Commission | Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri
PO Box 3220 | Level 10, 34 – 42 Manners Street | Wellington | 6140 | New
Zealand
Phone +64 4 495 0030 | Fax +64 4 495 0031 | [1]vote.nz | [2]elections.nz
[3][FYI request #14166 email]
Nov 19 16:36
Hi Public Enquiries,
Many thanks & a clarification to assist with fulfilment of this request.
My request refers to the Design + Democracy Project being a research unit
at Massey University’s College of Creative Arts, as opposed to the
international groups of similar names who also conduct civil engagement
programs around election time throughout the world.
My FYI request relates more specifically to the Electoral Commission’s
involvement with the Massey unit and their sponsors.
Thanks again,
Ryan
[4][FYI request #14166 email]
Monday 13:20
Dear Public Enquiries,
Can you please ensure Local Government NZ is included in this request as I
understand they are responsible for local elections. I would have sent
specific request however there is no current body supplied within your
database I could see to address my request.
Please confirm LGNZ are covered as part of this request, or advise if I
need to resubmit to LGNZ or other appropriate agency to facilitate a full
and transparent answer.
Sincerely & with thanks.
Ryan
Sent: Thursday, 19 November 2020 4:08 PM
To: '[FYI request #14166 email]'
<[5][FYI request #14166 email]>
Subject: RE: Official Information request - Smartmatic, Design and
Democracy & other Associate Organisations specialising in Election
Engineering
Kia ora Ryan
Thank you for your request.
We acknowledge receipt of your Official Information Act request regarding
‘Can you please provide all information relating to the Commission's
communication and collaboration with Smartmatic, including but not limited
to; Any and all approaches and proposals from Smartmatic to the Electoral
Commission and or it's third party affiliates or contractors. Any and all
approaches and or proposals to Smartmatic from the Electoral Commission
and or it's third party affiliates or contractors acting on behalf or in
conjunction with. Additionally, please provide a full breakdown of all
financial interests, both national and international behind the following
campaigns, including but not limited to, government and affiliates,
corporate sponsors, individuals, not for profit groups, companies,
politically affiliated organisations and or academics that added
meaningful contribution by way of material input and or donation; 1. Vote
local NZ. 2. On the fence. Please provide information on any other
campaigns authored or approved by the Electoral Commission for both the
2017 and 2020 NZ election including all assosiates and complete with the
same corresponding information as requested herein. Democracy & Design -
Please provide a comprehensive breakdown on all engagements of this group
by any and all govt agencies. I realise this will extend beyond the scope
of your Commission however please forward as appropriate to facilitate the
answer alongside that to be provided by the Electoral Commission - I trust
my queries are clear however please advise at your earliest convenience
should any aspect require clarification - time being of the essence.’,
received 19 November 2020.
Under the Official Information Act, we have 20 working days for response.
We will respond as soon as reasonably practicable within 20 working days.
Ngā mihi
Electoral Commission | Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri
PO Box 3220 | Level 10, 34 – 42 Manners Street | Wellington | 6140 | New
Zealand
Phone +64 4 495 0030 | Fax +64 4 495 0031 | [6]vote.nz | [7]elections.nz
From: Ryan
Date: Thu, Nov 19, 2020 at 7:58 am
Dear Electoral Commission,
Can you please provide all information relating to the Commission's
communication and collaboration with Smartmatic, including but not limited
to;
Any and all approaches and proposals from Smartmatic to the Electoral
Commission and or it's third party affiliates or contractors.
Any and all approaches and or proposals to Smartmatic from the Electoral
Commission and or it's third party affiliates or contractors acting on
behalf or in conjunction with.
Additionally, please provide a full breakdown of all financial interests,
both national and international behind the following campaigns, including
but not limited to, government and affiliates, corporate sponsors,
individuals, not for profit groups, companies, politically affiliated
organisations and or academics that added meaningful contribution by way
of material input and or donation;
1. Vote local NZ
2. On the fence
Please provide information on any other campaigns authored or approved by
the Electoral Commission for both the 2017 and 2020 NZ election including
all assosiates and complete with the same corresponding information as
requested herein.
Democracy & Design - Please provide a comprehensive breakdown on all
engagements of this group by any and all govt agencies. I realise this
will extend beyond the scope of your Commission however please forward as
appropriate to facilitate the answer alongside that to be provided by the
Electoral Commission - I trust my queries are clear however please advise
at your earliest convenience should any aspect require clarification -
time being of the essence.
Many thanks in advance.
Ryan
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[8][FYI request #14166 email]
Is [9][Electoral Commission request email] the wrong address for Official Information
requests to Electoral Commission? If so, please contact us using this
form:
[10]https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[11]https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Conversation ID: 70ccf31e-29d3-11eb-925e-9fcc4779ac43
70ccf31e-29d3-11eb-925e-9fcc4779ac43 e211bcf
References
Visible links
1. http://www.vote.nz/
2. https://elections.nz/
3. mailto:[FYI request #14166 email]
4. mailto:[FYI request #14166 email]
5. mailto:[FYI request #14166 email]
6. http://www.vote.nz/
7. https://elections.nz/
8. mailto:[FYI request #14166 email]
9. mailto:[Electoral Commission request email]
10. https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
11. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
From: Ryan
Dear Benjamin Baker,
Thank you for your follow up, to clarify;
I am seeking information specifically with regard to the use of Smartmatic and Design + Democracy by the New Zealand Govt and affiliates at both local and national level.
I understand the Electoral Commission will be providing information with regard to national general elections however my request extends to the local government and local elections comprising a significant part of this request.
Please confirm if this request will be sufficient to ensure a minister or government agency representative for local elections will provide a transparent answer to this request
If LGNZ representation is not being included as part of this request, please provide name(s) and all relevant departments so a duplicate request in pursuit of an answer can be made.
Thanks again Benjamin, I appreciate your time and would be grateful for a prompt response if this remains unclear and particularly to save further delay.
Ryan
From: Benjamin Baker
Kia ora Ryan
It does remain a little unclear. To answer your question, the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) is the relevant department responsible for local government. Local elections themselves are run by each local authority. We can transfer parts of your request to DIA if that was your intention.
Kind regards
Benjamin
show quoted sections
From: Ryan
Thank you Benjamin Baker,
I agree and yes it is unclear who the representative is so I would absolutely appreciate you transferring any and all relevant parts of this request through to the DIA or any other departments to ensure the necessary answers for transparency sake.
Can you please confirm if there are other aspects of my question that will not be addressed given ambiguity of whom the addressee should be?
It would be of great help if you could make this clear now so all the relevant departments are covered by this request to facilitate answers in full - again, time being of the essence.
Many thanks,
Ryan
From: Benjamin Baker
Kia ora Ryan
I have considered your questions and think it may be best if you submit an OIA request to DIA (https://www.dia.govt.nz/Official-Informa...). This is because, while you indicate you want your request to "include" local government it is not entirely clear to me what information you would seek from other agencies.
You have also asked which aspects of your questions may be ambiguous. Your mentions of "all relevant departments" is not made with due particularity. You may wish to consider asking specific questions to other agencies or Ministers.
The Electoral Commission will respond on matters for which it is responsible or holds information.
Kind regards
Benjamin
show quoted sections
From: Ryan
Dear Benjamin Baker,
Thank you but as per your previous response, I would like for you to go ahead and forward my initial request as you have suggested, to the DIA now that you have confirmed they are the appropriate department to answer on behalf of local government and in relation to local body elections.
I will submit further requests once I have this information if we find it lacking.
Thanks again Benjamin, I really appreciate your time and I look forward to receiving the information as outlined herein.
Ryan
Mark Allen left an annotation ()
Keep pressing Ryan - there was a similar OIA sent through regarding 'dominion' software being used which was answered within 36 hours of the request being sent in - the fact that yours is taking this long is very interesting and many people are waiting for this one to be answered. :-)
From: Benjamin Baker
Kia ora Ryan
Please find attached a response to your OIA request.
Kind regards
Benjamin
Benjamin Baker | Senior Advisor | Legal and Policy | Electoral
Commission | Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri
PO Box 3220 | Level 4, 34-42 Manners Street | Wellington
Work +64 4 806 3539 |[mobile number] | Fax +64 4 495 0031 |
[1]https://www.elections.nz | [2]https://vote.nz
[3][IMG]
References
Visible links
1. https://www.elections.nz/
2. https://vote.nz/
3. https://vote.nz/
From: Ryan
Thank you for your considered and timely response Benjamin,
In summary - the Electoral Commission states that 'The Electoral Commission has not had any involvement or communication with Smartmatic, nor any approaches from Smartmatic.'
With regard to the Vote Local NZ campaign which you confirm the electoral commission did not support as it was for local elections as opposed to a general election - Can you please confirm if you have forwarded this aspect of my original request and as subsequently offered, to the DIA as the local government authority responsible for local elections to ascertain if LGNZ worked with Smartmatic?
Confirmation would be appreciated to avoid any further requests and provide welcome disclosure under the Act.
Many thanks and I look forward to the conclusion of this request.
Best regards,
Ryan
From: Benjamin Baker
Hi Ryan
As advised, we will update in due course regarding any transfer. The
proposed transfer is to Massey University, regarding Democracy and Design.
Transfer was not accepted by DIA, so you will need to make a request
directly to them. As we discussed, it was not clear enough in your further
emails what information you sought from them. In any case, a direct
request to the responsible agency is advisable.
Kind regards
Benjamin
Benjamin Baker | Senior Advisor | Legal and Policy | Electoral Commission
| Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri
PO Box 3220 | Level 4, 34-42 Manners Street | Wellington
Work +64 4 806 3539 |[mobile number] | Fax +64 4 495 0031 |
https://www.elections.nz | https://vote.nz
show quoted sections
From: Benjamin Baker
Kia ora Ryan
As noted in our response to your OIA request, we have transferred to
Massey University the part of your request relating to Democracy and
Design’s engagement with other agencies, and other contributions or
interests in Vote Local or On the Fence.
This is because the information is not held by us but is believed to be
held by Massey University. In these circumstances, we are required by
section 14 of the Official Information Act to transfer your request.
You will hear further from Massey University concerning that part of your
request. They can also be contacted at [1][email address], though I
understand they are closed until 11 January 2021.
Kind regards
Benjamin
Benjamin Baker | Senior Advisor | Legal and Policy | Electoral
Commission | Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri
PO Box 3220 | Level 4, 34-42 Manners Street | Wellington
Work +64 4 806 3539 | Fax +64 4 495 0031 | [2]https://www.elections.nz |
[3]https://vote.nz
[4][IMG]
From: Benjamin Baker
Sent: Thursday, 17 December 2020 11:54 AM
To: 'Ryan' <[FOI #14166 email]>
Subject: RE: Your OIA request
Hi Ryan
As advised, we will update in due course regarding any transfer. The
proposed transfer is to Massey University, regarding Democracy and Design.
Transfer was not accepted by DIA, so you will need to make a request
directly to them. As we discussed, it was not clear enough in your further
emails what information you sought from them. In any case, a direct
request to the responsible agency is advisable.
Kind regards
Benjamin
Benjamin Baker | Senior Advisor | Legal and Policy | Electoral Commission
| Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri
PO Box 3220 | Level 4, 34-42 Manners Street | Wellington
Work +64 4 806 3539 |[mobile number] | Fax +64 4 495 0031 |
[5]https://www.elections.nz | [6]https://vote.nz
show quoted sections
Things to do with this request
- Add an annotation (to help the requester or others)
- Download a zip file of all correspondence
Offensive? Unsuitable?
Requests for personal information and vexatious requests are not considered valid requests for Official Information (read more).
If you believe this request is not suitable, you can report it for attention by the site administrators
Report this request
Mark Allen left an annotation ()
Amazing how you can answer an OIA in regards to the 'dominion' software being used in our elections ON THE SAME DAY the request came in - but when asked about the 'smartmatic' softeware you want 20 days to respond.......BLATANT to anybody that has done an OIA for themselves! That should give you ample time to get a good 'cover' ready for the waiting public. However, looking at the statistics over the past 5 elections that I have looked through, it seems these shenanigans are well entrenched here :-(
Link to this