Editing Suffrage (section)

===New Zealand===
{{Main|History of voting in New Zealand}}
* 1853 – British government passes the [[New Zealand Constitution Act 1852]], granting limited self-rule, including a [[bicameral parliament]], to the colony. The vote was limited to male British subjects aged 21 or over who owned or rented sufficient property and were not imprisoned for a serious offence. Communally owned land was excluded from the property qualification, thus disenfranchising most [[Māori people|Māori]] (indigenous) men.
* 1860 – Franchise extended to holders of miner's licenses who met all voting qualifications except that of property.
* 1867 – [[Māori seats]] established, giving Māori four [[reserved seats]] in the [[lower house]]. There was no property qualification; thus Māori men gained universal suffrage before other New Zealanders. The number of seats did not reflect the size of the Māori population, but Māori men who met the property requirement for general electorates were able to vote in them or in the Māori electorates but not both.
* 1879 – Property requirement abolished.
* 1893 – [[Women's suffrage in New Zealand|Women won equal voting rights]] with men, making New Zealand the first nation in the world to allow women to vote.
* 1969 – Voting age lowered to 20.
* 1974 – Voting age lowered to 18.
* 1975 – Franchise extended to permanent residents of New Zealand, regardless of whether they have citizenship.
* 1996 – Number of Māori seats increased to reflect Māori population.
* 2010 – Prisoners imprisoned for one year or more denied voting rights while serving the sentence.