Labour government loses half its seats in ‘bloodbath’ election loss.
New Zealanders will welcome a new right-leaning government after the Labour Party was swept out of power in a heavy election defeat.
Former airline executive Christopher Luxon, 53, will become New Zealand’s next prime minister after his centre-right National Party received the majority of votes.
The Labour Party, led by Chris Hipkins after the resignation of Jacinda Ardern in January, conceded defeat at a gathering of party faithful on the evening of Oct. 14—estimated to lose nearly half its seats.
“Labour Party is not in a position to form government,” he said.
“I can promise you we will keep fighting for working people, because that is our history, and our future,” he added. “We will get up again, like we have many times before.”
parties to form government. The centre-right National Party is a natural coalition partner with the libertarian ACT, while centre-left Labour tends to pair up with the Greens and Māori Party.
The Results So Far, Minor Parties Surge Ahead
After counting 98 percent of the vote as of 11 p.m. AEST, the New Zealand Electoral Commission count showed the National Party leading with 39.21 percent of the vote, with Labour at 26.66 percent.
Of the minor parties, the Greens Party hold 10.73 percent of the vote, ACT with 9.06 percent, New Zealand First at 6.45 percent, and the Maori Party at 2.57 percent.
The National Party is predicted to gain 50 seats, while Labour is projected to gain 34 seats.
This a marked turnaround from the 2020 election result where the National Party garnered just 33 seats and Labour won 65 seats outright—buoyed by the popularity of Ms. Ardern. At the previous election in 2016, the National Party held 56 seats, while Labour held 46.
In the current election, the minor parties have benefitted from disenchantment with the two major parties with the ACT expected to win 11 seats, the Greens with 14 seats, New Zealand First 8, and Te Pāti Māori with 4.
In 2020, the ACT won 9 seats, the Greens 10, New Zealand First held 0, and Te Pāti Māori won 2.
By Monica O’Shea and Daniel Y. Teng
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