The final results of the flag referendum are in, confirming Kyle Lockwood's Silver Fern the winner.
This is consistent with the preliminary results released on Friday night.
The official results include tens of thousands more votes date-stamped before voting closed on Friday and received by the Electoral Commission by noon on Tuesday.
Silver Fern (Black, White and Blue) by Kyle Lockwood was announced as the official winner of the flag referendum.
The black, white, and blue flag will go up against the current New Zealand flag in a run-off next March.
In the preliminary results it only narrowly pipped the former Wellington designer's alternative Silver Fern design, a mere 14,000 votes ahead of its Red, White and Blue sister for a 50.53 per cent to 49.47 per cent victory.
Critics of the referendum have pointed to the 48 per cent voting turnout as a sign of dissatisfaction with the process.
The high level of "informal" votes, at nearly 10 per cent on the back of a campaign to spoil ballots in protest, has also been highlighted by some.
However, Prime Minister John Key, who has led the charge for a new flag, said on Saturday he was happy with the voting levels and "delighted" with New Zealand's choice of alternative.
16 comments
Let it go John it is up to us
Posted on 15-12-2015 19:02 | By Merlin
John Keys almost daily comments on the flag referendum including having a go at the RSA's thinking is starting to annoy me.He may be showing some desperation for his $26 million folly which might come unstuck.I see a comment from him on the flag almost daily and hope this does not go until the March referendum.Also the hidden cost for business's and other things who have the flag 0n stationary etc will be compensated.
Con
Posted on 15-12-2015 19:14 | By sambro
This whole new flag thing is a con. Wake up NZ !!
.. and on it goes!
Posted on 15-12-2015 20:36 | By Mackka
What a fiasco this flag business has been - and will continue to be up until March. This flag looks like a drab coloured, dead fish! I guess between now and next March the Government will spend millions more in trying to convince us as to why we should vote for this rag rather than our current flag. What a total waste of time and money when the final result has been obvious right from the start!
Skewed result
Posted on 15-12-2015 21:32 | By SonnyJim
The flag committee mucked up by selecting one design and putting in front of us as two flags. So now it will most likely loose out as fern voters went for a colour preference instead of a design, hence votes will now pour in supporting the old flag. Time for conspiracy theorists to come out and play.
A referendum lesson
Posted on 15-12-2015 21:50 | By SonnyJim
I now see that the flag referendum should have been settled using B&W line drawings of flag designs, and the colours applied later. So there is now huge support for a fern flag and petty division over colour!
All We Get
Posted on 16-12-2015 07:52 | By Merlin
All we get get almost daily is John Key having a comment on or photo about the flag referendum.Let it go John the people can make their own minds up.You even say the RSA is wrong in their thinking.
Hooray
Posted on 16-12-2015 08:43 | By DiB
All you tunnel vision people who have probably never left our shores, don't seem to realise that all around the world they so often think our flag is Australia's. This has so annoyed me for years but now we finally might be able to have a flag (one that I really like), which overseas people will instantly recognise as ours. As far as the RSA goes, they should remember that all overseas War Graves have a fern on them, not a Union Jack. I look forward to March, it will be close.
Our Identity
Posted on 16-12-2015 11:39 | By Gigilo
This is the way forward, get rid of that colonial stamp off our flag. No fear of any of the knockers doing anything as they are part of the 1.5 million that did not vote in this referendum. Talk is cheap.
Sliver Fern
Posted on 16-12-2015 13:36 | By Corwen
So is the fern on the flag to be white or silver? Why not a SILVER fern on a all BLACK background???
Waste of money
Posted on 16-12-2015 13:47 | By BenKent
Couldn't care less about our flag, wouldn't care if we didn't have a flag at all. However voting against the change in the final referendum purely out of principal, should never have even started this debate. Far more important things to spend the money on, if we were a country like Sweden with a massive surplus then yeah, sure, change the flag annually for all I care. But come on, what a waste of time and money. Anybody who votes to change the flag is purely encouraging our govt. to waste money on meaningless crap and continuing the govt. to totally disregard what the people want/need.
Just Flag It
Posted on 16-12-2015 15:03 | By Road Ranger
Take a hard and close look at the flag picture - the top half of the fern (in the black) looks like a picket fence with it's reflection below (in the blue). A flag for the deportees!!
flag it
Posted on 16-12-2015 16:37 | By dumbkof2
looks like a fish skeleton and will be know as a ponga flag
@BenKent
Posted on 16-12-2015 16:37 | By yourthumb
Sweden hasn't seen a budget surplus since 2011, and the government earlier this year launched an analysis into whether they should drop their ongoing target of reaching a 1% surplus.
Pathetic Reasons
Posted on 16-12-2015 16:54 | By DCE
Look at all the pathetic reasons for changing our flag. " It looks like Australia's" as if you cant see the big white star under the union jack. "Remove the yoke of oppression" since when have any New Zealanders been oppressed by the common wealth? That's why its called a UNION Jack and like it or not its part of our heritage. If we are so hell bent on removing any signs of British oppression then how about we remove all parts of British heritage including the Treaty of Waitangi which by the way was signed as a contract with the British. You cant have your cake and eat it.
Well said DCE
Posted on 17-12-2015 12:54 | By Kenworthlogger
Totally agree with you mate. DIb if you take note of any war grave NONE of them have any flags on them. They all fought as soldiers! I am a regular overseas traveler and have never found anyone that does not recognise the kiwi flag, who cares about the ignorant ones that do not. Nobody get the French flag confused with the Dutch or Italian do they???
Agree with DCE
Posted on 24-12-2015 22:13 | By GreertonBoy
Many NZ soldiers fought and died for that flag... I doubt many will be proud to fight for a sporting icon? It is a wonder it doesn't have 'Proudly bought to you by so and so across the bottom? [add sarcasm there].... not to mention... how many zillion has this cost us so far? and how much more cash do we have to fork out now?.... may as well just use the skull and crossbones flag... the polly's are pirates anyway...
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