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Changelog

Source: NEWS.md

scgElectionsNZ (development version 0.0.1)

Overview

This is the initial release of scgElectionsNZ, an R package designed to provide comprehensive data and analytical tools for New Zealand’s general election results from 1996 to 2023. This development version marks the first step in offering a robust resource for political scientists, researchers, students, and anyone interested in the intricacies of New Zealand’s electoral processes.

Major Features

Datasets Introduced:
This version includes several key datasets:

  • summary: National-level overall results by party.
  • turnout: Electorate and ballot type-specific turnout and informal vote details.
  • vote_type: Validity and type of votes by electorate and ballot.
  • party_votes: Party votes at the electorate level.
  • candidate_votes: Candidate votes at the electorate level.
  • majority: Winning candidates and their margins of victory at the electorate level.
  • split_electorate: Electorate-level split-ticket voting data (2005 - 2023).
  • split_total: National-level split-ticket voting data (2005 - 2023).
  • preMMP_results: National-level results from 1890 to 1993, before MMP.
  • historic_turnout: National-level turnout data from 1879 to 2023.

Helper Functions:
A set of functions to enhance data handling and analysis:

  • add_data(): Augments datasets with regional or electorate type information.
  • update_names(): Standardises electorate names for consistent analysis across years or condense unsuccessful party names into “Other” for easier analysis.

Documentation and Examples:
Comprehensive documentation and examples have been provided for each dataset and function, making it easier for users to understand and utilise the package effectively.

Improvements and Bug Fixes

  • Data Accuracy: Implementation of rigorous checks to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the datasets.
  • Performance Optimisation: Enhancements made to improve the performance of data processing and analysis functions.

Future Plans

  • Known Data Issues: Addressing discrepancies in raw split voting files and updating split_electorate and split_total datasets accordingly.
  • Data Improvements: Enhancing the quality of internal datasets that feed into the helper functions and including special characters in the datasets.
  • Additional Datasets: Addition of results_by_booths for Party and Candidate Votes, including Advanced voting, to align candidate_votes with party_votes.
  • By-Election and Referendum Data: Inclusion of detailed datasets on by-elections and referendums to provide a more comprehensive electoral analysis.
  • New Functions: Development of new functions such as amend_boundary, plot_parliament, and plot_cartogram for advanced analysis and visualisation.
  • CRAN Release: Plans for releasing the package on CRAN to widen accessibility.