Voters with disabilities can either vote on election day, in advance, or cast a special declaration vote from home. You can apply [or ask] to have the voting papers collected for you from your returning officer or from a polling place.Alternatively you can contact your returning officer to arrange for your voting papers to be brought to you. If you vote from home make sure that your voting papers are returned to an advance voting place by the Friday before election day, or to an electorate headquarters or polling place by 7pm on election day.Resources available include:

• DVD – Enrolling and Voting at the General Election- The Easy Way: A DVD in New Zealand Sign Language

• DVD Get Ready and Vote at the General Election - The Easy Way: People with intellectual disabilities talk about voting DVD, Also availablle as (.mpg, 23MB)

• Booklet Get Ready and Vote: The Easy Guide to Voting a plain language information resource about enrolling and voting

• Poster Voting on Election Day is Easy

• Voting in the 2008 General Election - the easy way (Large Print)

• Unable to get to a polling place on election day (Large Print)

Improving access to voting for disabled people - action planIn preparation for the 2008 general election disability groups were consulted and an action plan, Access ’08, developed to improve accessibility. The consultation confirmed three priority areas for improvement:

1. the content and format of electoral information
2. the subsequent distribution of this information
3. physical access and assistance at polling places.

The process for the implementation of these priorities is outlined in the [469 action plan].Relevant ResourcesVoting in the 2008 general election - the easy way![375 How to make an advance vote][376 How to make a special declaration vote][411 Unable to get to polling place?]