WorldNew Zealand
New Zealand election night ends with National and Labour 0.1 points apart, no concession
With 97% counted, Luxon says National has a pathway to government and Hipkins says the shape of the next one is unclear. The Greens and ACT posted record results, and special votes will decide the rest.
Key points
- With 97% of the count in, National leads Labour on the party vote by 29.3% to 29.2%.
- The right bloc of National, ACT and NZ First is projected at 67 seats against 63 for Labour, the Greens, Te Pāti Māori and Opportunity.
- Neither leader has conceded; special votes and the official result on November 27 will settle it.
New Zealand’s election night ended without a winner. With 97% of the vote counted, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s National Party has 29.3% of the party vote and Chris Hipkins’ Labour 29.2%, a gap of about a tenth of a point, and neither man has conceded.
Luxon, speaking to supporters late on the night, said: “Tonight New Zealand has voted, and it looks like an MMP special.” He added: “We have a pathway to forming the next government. It is too close to call.” Hipkins said: “it’s clear we’re not going to know the exact shape of the next government.” He did not concede.
The seats
On the count so far, the right bloc of National, ACT and NZ First is projected at 67 seats. Labour, the Greens, Te Pāti Māori and the newcomer Opportunity Party together stand at 63. Parliament may grow to 130 seats because of overhang seats, which would put the majority mark at 66.
Two smaller parties had their best night. The Greens reached 13.3%, their best national result ever, and ACT took 11%, also a record. NZ First is on 9.8%. Opportunity, on about 6%, clears the 5% threshold and is set to win seven seats, its first time in Parliament. Te Pāti Māori is on 0.6% of the party vote but is likely to return at least four MPs through its electorate seats.
What happens next
Several electorates are tight. National’s lead in Hamilton East was 456 votes and in Wairarapa just 69. Those seats, and the overall balance, will move when special votes are added. Special votes, which include those cast overseas and outside a voter’s home electorate, have tended to help left-leaning parties in recent elections.
The official result is due on November 27, and coalition talks could run well beyond that. Luxon has ruled out working with Opportunity, which says it would approach National first only if its bottom lines are met. Caretaker conventions apply to the government in the meantime.