New Zealand’s election remains too close to call, with the result potentially taking weeks to settle as the centre-right government and Labour-led opposition trade places in a tight count.
Prime Minister Chris Luxon’s National Party was narrowly ahead on 29.4 per cent of the vote after 60 per cent of ballots had been counted. Chris Hipkins’ Labour Party was just behind on 29.3 per cent.
The early figures indicate several possible outcomes, including a narrow victory for the governing coalition, a Labour-led administration or a hung parliament.
Electoral Commission projections put National, ACT and NZ First on 67 seats, compared with 63 for Labour, the Greens, the Maori Party and the newly emerging Opportunity movement.
Those projections have shifted throughout the night as the nationwide party vote and individual electorate contests have been counted.
New Zealand election hangs on coalition numbers
ACT leader David Seymour said he did not know whether his party would return to government, despite ACT recording its strongest result with 10.9 per cent of the vote.
“It’s going to take some time before it becomes clear,” he said. “What I do know is it’s a record result for ACT tonight and we are so happy.”
The Greens have also secured a record share, polling 13.7 per cent. The Maori Party received 0.6 per cent but could win five MPs through electorate contests, while Opportunity was on about 5.7 per cent and appeared set to enter parliament with six MPs.
Those seats could prove decisive if the left is able to assemble a majority.
The six-week campaign was dominated by cost-of-living concerns, with the contest remaining finely balanced throughout.
National’s vote has fallen from 38 per cent at the previous election, while the party has retained an advantage in many electorates. That combination appears to be creating an overhang under New Zealand’s proportional representation system.
Voters cast one ballot for an electorate MP and another for a party. Parties normally receive seats in line with their share of the nationwide party vote, but can retain additional electorate MPs if they win more constituencies than that share would entitle them to.
The prospect of an overhang has affected several senior National figures. Finance Minister Nicola Willis said it was “very unlikely” she would be returned, while Defence Minister Paul Goldsmith and Speaker Gerry Brownlee also appeared to have lost their seats.
“It is looking very unlikely I will be returned,” Ms Willis said, adding that a “process of renewal” was under way.
ACT and NZ First had urged right-leaning voters to use strategic voting to maximise the overall number of MPs supporting the right, adding another layer of uncertainty to the final result.
