Anglican Church leaders in New Zealand have given their backing to the proportional voting system for electing members of Parliament and have urged voters to register their support in this week’s national referendum.

In 1993 New Zealand adopted a mixed member proportional (MMP) voting system modeled upon the German Bundestag’s system for electing Members of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. Voters were asked to choose between the MMP system and the traditional first past the post (FPP) used by most Commonwealth countries.  MMP won the 1993 referendum, polling 54 per cent to FPP’s 46 per cent.

A non-binding referendum is scheduled for this week’s general election, the sixth under the MMP system, asking voters if they wish to keep MMP or adopt another system.  An MMP election in New Zealand gives voters two votes: one for a party and one for a candidate.  The party votes determine what share of the 120 seats each party gets in Parliament, while votes for MP’s from the country’s 70 electoral districts are determined by a FPP method.

In a statement released last week, the Standing Committee of the Anglican Church of Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia endorsed the MMP system, saying it had worked for the Anglican Church in New Zealand and should work for the national government.

“We believe that the referendum on MMP offers an opportunity for affirmation of the principle that, in a democracy like ours, there needs to be provision for minority groups to be included in the formation and exercise of government. The voices of all significant political groups in this country need the opportunity to work in various forms of partnership and collation following the electoral process. We hold this view because we have valued this kind of power sharing and partnership within our own constitution and church government.”

“We strongly encourage consideration of the various proportional representation models available in the referendum, acknowledging the democratic value of MMP as it has developed so far in New Zealand,” the church said.

Advocates for the MMP system, led by the Campaign for MMP group, have argued the system promotes minority representation and allows parliament to reflect the makeup of the community.

Opponents led by the Vote for Change coalition have urged voters to rescind MMP.  They argue the current system promotes inefficient government and gives more power to political parties who are not answerable to voters.

The vote on MMP is scheduled for 26 November 2011.