New Zealand general election results show tight race
WELLINGTON — New Zealand’s ruling centre-right National Party and main opposition Labour are nearly deadlocked in the popular vote as counting commenced in the nationwide general election on Saturday, reports BritPanorama.
Results from the Electoral Commission indicate that with 27.4% of the results counted, both parties are polling just short of 30% of the popular vote, separated by only a few thousand votes.
A projection from New Zealand’s Electoral Commission suggested that the current three-party ruling coalition, led by National, could secure a majority of just one seat, following an election season overshadowed by a struggling economy and significant voter disillusionment with both major parties.
“I think it’s going to take some time before that becomes clear,” stated David Seymour, leader of junior coalition party ACT, when asked about the coalition’s prospects for returning to power.
Left-leaning parties, including Labour, aspire to make the National Party coalition the first one-term government in nearly fifty years.
While the Electoral Commission expects to announce preliminary results from 50% of voting places by 10 p.m. local time, the formation of a new government may not materialise until after the official results are released on November 27 and coalition negotiations are completed.
New Zealand’s electoral system traditionally favours coalition governments, and the close nature of this year’s race indicates that at least one smaller party will likely join in governance.
The country adopted a mixed member proportional system in 1996, allowing voters to cast ballots for both a party and a local constituency candidate. A coalition or party must command a majority of 71 constituency seats and at least 49 party seats to form a government.
Special votes, which encompass ballots from overseas voters or those outside their electorate, will not be counted until November 27. Historically, these special votes have tended to favour left-leaning parties, often at the expense of those on the right.
New Zealand has been recovering gradually from an extended economic downturn, characterised by subdued growth, strained household budgets, and rising unemployment, which reached 5.7% in the third quarter, the highest level in eleven years.
