The Electoral Commission (Māori: Te Kaitiaki Take Kōwhiri) is an independent Crown entity set up by the New Zealand Parliament.

It was an independent Crown entity, not part of any larger department or Ministry, and was established under the Electoral Act 1993.

The four primary functions of the previous Electoral Commission were: For most business, the previous Electoral Commission consisted of four members – a President, a Chief Executive, the head of the Ministry of Justice, and the Chief Judge of the Māori Land Court.

Two additional members, one appointed by the Government and one by the Opposition, participate in the commission e.g. on the allocation of broadcasting funds.

This participation is generally condemned by smaller parties, which claim that Labour and National unfairly monopolised funding.