The Greens have been accused of using child poverty to mislead people into donating to them.

But a spokesman for New Zealand's third-largest party said they were simply adopting fundraising techniques used by the likes of United States President Barack Obama.

Former UnitedFuture candidate Pete George blogged about a letter emailed to Green Party supporters on Wednesday.

The email was on Green Party letterhead and was signed by co-leader Metiria Turei.

It talks about the party's Take the Step to End Child Poverty campaign and then seeks donations to help "run a strong campaign".

"Help us get more people advocating for children in poverty among the decision-makers, and to print and post the facts, figures and solutions - so our children's plight is understood more widely than ever before," it said.

Mr George said money raised here would "fund Green Party political campaigning" and there was no indication the money would go to poor people.

A spokesman for the Greens said there was nothing suspect in the request for donations.

All donations received would go towards the party's campaign to end child poverty.

"Ending child poverty requires political action. Our campaign is about getting rid of the political causes of poverty," he said.

"Our fundraising appeals are consistent with recent developments in email fundraising. Many people now prefer to fund specific campaigns rather than parties."

Mr Obama's campaign team has employed similar tactics in the US presidential campaign, including asking for donations to fund a website dedicated to rebutting political attacks on the him.

The donations do not necessarily go directly to that cause but rather into the wider campaign fund.

- © Fairfax NZ News