September 19th is Suffrage Day - a day to commemorate the milestone of women gaining the right to vote, and acknowledge the contributions of women who have fought to advance women’s rights and the betterment of our society.
If you're keen to celebrate, grab a friend and check out this list of amazing things that are happening across Aotearoa – including with our own NCWNZ branches and action hubs. Keep checking back regularly as we add more events around the motu!
NCWNZ BRANCH & HUB EVENTS
Auckland
Suffrage Day
Hosted by NCWNZ Auckland, Auckland Council’s Women’s Network, Maori Women’s Welfare league
Friday, 19 September, 9.00–10.30am
Ellen Melville Centre, Auckland
Cost: FREE
Join us for informal coffee and networking to celebrate 132 years of women's suffrage in Aotearoa New Zealand, followed by speakers, including Prof Gail Pacheco, Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner, Dellwyn Stuart, Chief Executive of YWCA and NCWNZ Board member, Dr Rebekah Fuller, Auckland Council Women's Network, and Prue Kapua, Māori Women's Welfare League.
Hamilton
Bridge light in Suffrage Purple
13–20 September
Anzac Parade Bridge, Hamilton
Cost: FREE
Wellington
NCWNZ and WWHC Fundraiser Quiz Night
Thursday 18th Sep, 6:30pm - 9pm
Waitoa Victoria St, Wellington
Cost: $20 per person or $100 for a team of 6
Conversations with Wahine (winner of the "Best Access Radio show" at the 2025 NZ Radio and Podcast awards) and National Council of Women NZ are co-hosting a fundraiser quiz night with the Wellington Women's Health Collective to raise funds to continue our mahi. We are volunteer run organisations but as with everything these days, the costs to continue are rising.
Please arrive by 6:30pm to get your tables, drinks and food, to be ready for a 7pm quiz start.
The emcee and quiz master for the night is up-and-coming Canadian (turned Wellingtonian) comedian Meaghan Fisher who will be sure to make you laugh!
More information and tickets here
Christchurch
NCWNZ Ōtautahi Christchurch Branch - Annual Suffrage Day celebration
Hosted by Te Whare Waiutuutu Kate Sheppard House
Friday, 19 September, 12–1pm,
Kate Sheppard Memorial, 159 Oxford Terrace
Cost: FREE
More information (and wet weather venue announcements) here
AUCKLAND AREA EVENTS
Connection Series - Women, work, and retirement
Wednesday 17 September
Registrations and lunch from 12pm, with the panel event 12.30–1.30pm
KPMG, Auckland Central
Cost: FREE
New Zealand has a 25% gender savings gap in KiwiSaver balances, along with systemic barriers affecting women across their lives. The upcoming Connection Series in-person event will discuss sector-led solutions, cross-sector collaboration, and the role of leadership in driving change.
Join us for an early Suffrage Day event. Hear from a panel of experts as they explore the findings from a new report compiled by MartinJenkins for the Retirement Commission, which provides a life-course analysis of women and retirement income.
More information and registration here
50 years of Feminism, Womanism and Mana Wāhine
Wednesday 17 September, 7–9 pm
Western Springs Community Garden Hall
Cost: $0 – $40
It’s the 50th birthday of the Auckland Women’s Centre!
In the lead-up to Suffrage Day, come celebrate at our very special “collector’s edition” community kōrero on how wāhine and women have been smashing waves of intersectional feminism, womanism and mana wāhine into white patriarchy in Tāmaki Makaurau and beyond, over the last half century.
What have wāhine Māori and tauiwi women gained, and what have we lost in the last 50 years? When has solidarity worked – and when has it not? How do we, as women, trans and cis, face the challenges of contemporary misogyny?
More information and registration here
HAWKES BAY AREA EVENTS
Camelia Breakfast: BPW CHB Fundraiser
Friday, 19 September, 7–9am
Central Hawke's Bay Municipal Theatre, Waipawa
Cost: $28.62 each ($25.00 + $3.62 fees)
Celebrate NZ Suffrage Day while you enjoy a delicious breakfast, with great company and be inspired by our speaker, local author Charity Norman. Charity is a best-selling author who explores contemporary topics through the medium of crime writing. She has enjoyed a varied life, arriving in rural New Zealand via Uganda and the UK.
More information and tickets here
Hidden in History: Suffrage Day Breakfast
Friday 19 September, 7:45am
MTG Hawke's Bay, Napier
Cost: $20 (MTG Friends $15)
Join us for a Suffrage Day Breakfast on NZ Suffrage Day. Your ticket includes a talk and Q&A session with Hidden in History curator Professor Emeritus Kay Morris Matthews, a light breakfast, tea & coffee.
More information and tickets here
WHANGANUI AREA EVENTS
Women Who Lead with Margaret Campion
Hosted by NWomen's Network Whanganui
Tuesday 16th September, 5:30pm
Barracks Sports Bar, 170 St Hill St, Whanganui
Cost: FREE
WELLINGTON AREA EVENTS
Celebrating 132 years of women’s suffrage
Hosted by National Library Wellington
Friday 19th September, 12:30pm - 1:15pm
Te Ahumairangi (ground floor), National Library, Wellington
Cost: FREE
Celebrate Suffrage Day with a special lunchtime tour and kōrero, highlighting the 1893 Women’s Suffrage Petition | Te Petihana Whakamana Pōti Wahine, which paved the way for women’s suffrage in Aotearoa.
More info here (booking not required)
CHRISTCHURCH AREA EVENTS
Exhibition Opening: Person Includes Woman: C19th Women Confronting the Lens
Hosted by Te Whare Waiutuutu Kate Sheppard House
Friday, 19 September, 6–8pm
Kate Sheppard House, 83 Clyde Road, Christchurch, Canterbury 8041
Cost: $5 + booking fee (includes non-alcoholic beverages and canapes).
Join us at our nation's suffrage campaign epicentre to honour and celebrate 132 years since New Zealand led the world in granting women the right to vote.
This year, we are opening an extraordinary photographic feminist exhibition honouring a diverse selection of nineteenth-century women whose images and silent gazes challenge us to remember them, reckon with, and restore their stories that have too often been left untold.
Get more info and tickets here
Celebrate Women’s Suffrage in Aotearoa – with a rural twist!
Friday, 19 September, 1:30–3:30pm
Te Whare Waiutuutu Kate Sheppard House, Christchurch
Cost: FREE
Progress & Possibility: Women’s Voices from Rural NZ
Join Rural Women NZ, NZ Young Farmers, and the Minister for Women for a kōrero on women’s progress in rural communities — what’s changed, what hasn’t, and what’s still needed.
Expect fresh perspectives, real-world stories, and open discussion on how we can better support women across rural industries, communities, and leadership.
Get more info and register here
Public Roles, Private Lives: John Hall and Kate Sheppard at home
Hosted by Te Whare Waiutuutu Kate Sheppard House
Sunday, 21 September, 10:30am–3:00pm
Kate Sheppard House, Christchurch
Cost: $30 regular tickets or $27 for Heritage NZ members
To celebrate the 132nd anniversary of women's suffrage, take a rare journey to the homes - and hearts - of two of Aotearoa's influential suffrage advocates: Kate Sheppard and Sir John Hall.
Helen Osborne, Heritage New Zealand's Property Lead and Kate Foster, historian, great-granddaughter of Sir John Hall and kaitiaki of Terrace Station, Hororata, will share insights into the lives and convictions of the two leaders.
Learn how their values, faith, family, and personal hardship shaped their shared commitment to campaign and fight for the women’s vote. Discover how their strategic partnership became a driving force to political achievement - universal women's suffrage - in Aotearoa New Zealand in 1893.
Get more info and register here
NATIONWIDE EVENTS
We Belong: The Power of Presence
Hosted by the National Association of Women in Construction NZ and BCITO
Thursday 18 September, time dependent on the city
Cost: FREE
NAWIC believes women belong in every part of the construction sector — from the worksite to the boardroom. We connect, support, and celebrate women at every career stage, building a network that drives change. BCITO are empowering women in trades through the new Actions Speak Louder initiative. From practical solutions such as improved hygienic facilities and access to period products, to essential workwear and measures that support injury prevention, these initiatives are creating real change on the frontline- ensuring everyone feels they belong on site.
Together, NAWIC and BCITO are proud to present nationwide We Belong Discussion Panels honouring Suffrage Day and celebrating the women shaping construction’s present and future.
Join us for an evening of inspiration, conversation, and connection, where panels will showcase the incredible women driving our industry forward — breaking new ground, opening doors for others, and leading with legacy, mentorship, and vision.
Find your panel discussion and more info here
Women's Day of Action: Rise up for Pay Equity
Hosted by New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi (NZCTU)
September 20th 2025, 8:00am - 6pm
Cost: FREE
This day is a bold and visible statement in the fight for pay equity. 132 years and one day after women secured the right to vote in Aotearoa, we gather again in strength and solidarity.
This Day of Action is more than protest – it is a celebration of the women who nurture, lead, and resist. It honours the suffrage legacy and amplifies our collective power to shape the future. It is a moment for all who love and support women to show their solidarity. Wear purple, green, and white to honour the Aotearoa suffrage flower – the camellia – and show up!
Actions are planned across the country: March in Auckland, gather in Porirua or Christchurch, raise your voice in Wellington, host a crafternoon in Invercargill, or show support online – you are part of this movement.
These events welcome everyone – whānau, communities, and individuals of all genders, backgrounds, and identities – to stand together for pay equity and justice.
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