Why media exclusion from a by-election matters

Excluding media from a by-election event is not a procedural footnote. It changes what voters are able to know before they cast a vote.

The argument for exclusion is usually about protocol or the comfort of participants. The problem is that a candidate forum is not a private gathering; it is one of the few moments where people who will not read a manifesto get to compare candidates directly.

Reporters are not there as guests. They are there because most voters cannot be, and because promises made in a room without a record have a habit of softening later.

There is also a specific cost in Māori electorates, where coverage is already thinner than in general seats. Every closed door widens a gap that is not the fault of the communities living with it.