[5] On 21 November 2022, the Supreme Court of New Zealand ruled in Make It 16 Incorporated v Attorney-General that the voting age of 18 years was inconsistent with the right to be free from discrimination under section 19 of the Bill of Rights Act 1990 and that they had not been justified.

[9] In August 2020, the Tauranga City Council resolved to establish a Māori ward,[10] later on 28 January 2021, it was confirmed by local electoral officer Warwick Lampp that a petition calling for a local referendum to overturn the council's decision to establish a Māori ward had reached the necessary threshold of 5% of eligible local voters.

Mahuta commented that "Polls have proven to be an almost insurmountable barrier to councils trying to improve the democratic representation of Māori interests.

[14] On 30 July 2024, the Sixth National Government passed legislation reinstating the poll provision for establishing and retaining Māori wards.

[15][16] As part of this policy reversal, local and regional councils that have already established a Māori ward without a referendum are required to hold a binding poll alongside the 2025 New Zealand local elections or to disestablish them.