2015–16 New Zealand flag referendums have markedly low attendance. The consideration panel noted strong online engagement with over 850,000 visits to the website and 1,180,000 engagements on social media. The panel reported that feedback found the themes of freedom, history, equality, respect and family to be the most significant to New Zealanders, however it was later revealed that those themes were dwarfed by the amount of feedback critical of the flag change process. From the submitted designs they found the most common colours were white, blue, red, black, and green. The most common elements incorporated into the flag designs were the Southern Cross, silver fern,
Red Peak flag British European and Māori cultures, two groups which are especially prominent in New Zealand's history. After counting the preferential votes in the first flag referendum, Red Peak was eliminated after round three of the preferences. The flag was designed by Aaron Dustin along with 17 other flag designs in May to July 2015 as part of the New Zealand Government call for alternative flag designs, and submitted under the pseudonym Andor Unista (an anagram for Aaron Dustin) from Wellington. In August 2015 Red Peak was selected in the long list of 40 flag designs by the Flag Consideration Panel. A