WELLINGTON: The support rate for New Zealand's ruling National Party has dropped three percentage points to 29 per cent, narrowing its lead over the opposition Labor Party, which remained unchanged at 27 per cent, a new poll showed on Tuesday (Oct 27) ahead of the Nov. 7 general election.
The latest 1News-Verian poll showed the Green Party down one point to 15 per cent, while the Maori Party fell to 0.1 per cent, its lowest result in the poll.
Among National's coalition partners, ACT rose one point to 12 per cent and New Zealand First gained two points to 10 per cent. The Opportunity Party slipped one point to six per cent, according to the poll.
Based on the results, Labor, the Greens, the Maori Party and another Maori-focused party would collectively hold 56 seats in parliament, compared with 61 for National, ACT and New Zealand First. The Opportunity Party would win eight seats, potentially holding the balance of power between the left and right blocs.
New Zealand uses a mixed-member proportional electoral system to elect its parliament. Under this system, the government is usually formed by two or more parliamentary political parties.
The electoral system makes the party vote particularly important. Voters cast two ballots, one for a political party and another for their local electorate candidate.
A party generally needs at least five per cent of the party vote or to win an electorate seat to qualify for proportional representation in parliament. This allows smaller parties to enter parliament and potentially hold the balance of power when neither major bloc commands a majority.
In the preferred prime minister rankings, National leader Christopher Luxon rose four points to 24 per cent, while Labor leader Chris Hipkins gained one point to 18 per cent.
The poll surveyed 1,003 eligible voters by mobile phone and online between Oct. 15 and 19, with a maximum sampling error of approximately 3.1 percentage points at the 95 per cent confidence level.
Prime Minister Luxon's centre-right National Party is seeking a second term after taking office in 2023, while Labor, led by former prime minister Hipkins, is campaigning to return to power amid public concerns over the cost of living, economic growth, jobs and public services.
Advance voting opened across New Zealand on Monday, allowing voters to cast their ballots nearly two weeks before the general election, as political parties vie for support in a closely contested race. Official election results are scheduled to be declared on Nov. 27. - Xinhua
