Conservatives Surge to Power in New Zealand Election

Labour government loses half its seats in ‘bloodbath’ election loss.

National leader Christopher Luxon arrives at Shed 10 after winning the general election in Auckland, New Zealand on Oct. 14, 2023. Fiona Goodall/Getty Images

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,” Mr. Hipkins said.

“I can promise you we will keep fighting for working people, because that is our history, and our future. We will get up again, like we have many times before.”

Labour leader Chris Hipkins speaks during a Labour Party election night event at Lower Hutt Events Centre in Wellington, New Zealand on Oct. 14, 2023. Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

In New Zealand, major parties commonly have to work with minor parties to form a 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 Green and Maori parties.

Minor Parties Surge Ahead

After counting 100 percent of the vote, the New Zealand Electoral Commission’s preliminary results showed the National Party leading with 38.95 percent of the vote, with Labour at 26.9 percent.

Of the minor parties, the Green Party held 10.77 percent of the vote, ACT held 8.98 percent, New Zealand First held 6.46 percent, and the Maori Party held 2.61 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 in which 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.

National leader Christopher Luxon (2L) his wife Amanda Luxon (2R) and children Olivia Luxon (L) and William Luxon (R) celebrate at Shed 10 in Auckland, New Zealand, after winning the general election on Oct. 14, 2023. Fiona Goodall/Getty Images

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 with eight, and Te Pāti Maori with four.

In 2020, the ACT won nine seats, the Greens 10, New Zealand First held zero, and Te Pati Maori won two.

A 61-seat majority out of the 120 seats in the National Parliament is needed to form a government, meaning that the National Party will likely partner with ACT, which has been an ardent critic of the previous government’s decision to lockdown the country and mandate vaccines.

“Tonight you have given us the mandate to take the nation forward,” Mr. Luxon said at a celebration of the National Party faithful in Auckland, New Zealand.

“Together we will make this an even better country. My pledge to you is that my government will be able to deliver for every New Zealander.”

Mr. Luxon is a former Air New Zealand CEO who also worked in Chicago and Canada for many years as an executive with Unilever.

A first-term member of Parliament, Mr. Luxon has held office since 2020 and has been the leader of the National Party since 2021.

Polling prior to the election predicted that New Zealand First, led by Winston Peters, may hold the balance of power.

With the National Party and ACT currently holding 61 seats between them, this could only happen if NZ First gains an extra seat.

Mr. Peters, who campaigned heavily against vaccine mandates, has previously said that he wouldn’t work with Labour.

National pollster David Farrar described the result as a “bloodbath” early on Oct. 14 evening as the early results were being counted.

Huge lines were reported around New Zealand on election day, while reports emerged that the electronic version of the electoral roll had crashed.

The now-outgoing prime minister, Mr. Hipkins, 45, served as health minister during the COVID-19 pandemic under former Prime Minister Ardern.

Former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and then COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins address the media at a COVID-19 update press conference at Parliament in Wellington, New Zealand, on Oct. 11, 2021. Robert Kitchin - Pool/Getty Images

However, before resigning from power, Ms. Ardern’s popularity struggled as a swathe of cost of living, inflation, and housing issues swept the population.

During his speech conceding defeat on Oct. 14, Mr. Hipkins thanked New Zealanders for the honour and opportunity to serve as their leader.

New Zealand uses a mixed member proportional (MMP) voting system. Under the MMP system, the population gets two votes—a party vote, as well as an electorate vote.

In New Zealand, there are 120 seats overall for MPs.

Each candidate who wins an electorate will gain a seat in Parliament and become an MP. Then, the remaining seats will be taken up by party lists.

Who’s Who in NZ?

The National Party, founded in 1936, is the major centre-right political party in New Zealand. They’re economically conservative but lean progressive on some social issues such as net zero by 2050, which they’re fully committed to.

Labour, the other major party, is the centre-left alternative founded 107 years ago in 1916.

ACT New Zealand is a right-wing classical liberal party led by David Seymour and founded by a former Labour minister.

NZ First is a populist and nationalist political party formed in 1993 when Winston Peters left the National Party.

The Greens is a left-wing political party in New Zealand led by co-leaders Marama Davidson and James Shaw.

Also on the left, the Maori Party led by co-leaders Rawiri Wikuki Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer advocates for more rights for the Maori people.