New Zealand has no clear winner ahead of 27 November
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on IOL and Business Day (South Africa)
New Zealand’s general election has produced no clear winner, with Christopher Luxon’s National Party leading with 42 seats. The right-wing bloc provisionally holds 67 of 131 seats, a one-seat majority, but nearly 400,000 votes remain to be counted before final results on 27 November, according to IOL.
Christopher Luxon’s National Party and its allies ACT New Zealand and New Zealand First provisionally hold 67 of 131 seats, one more than the majority. Nearly 400,000 ballots, representing about 14% of the vote, still have to be counted, according to IOL.
Luxon and Labour leader Chris Hipkins said they would wait for the final results before beginning formal coalition negotiations. The seven MPs elected from the centrist Opportunity Party, which crossed the 5% threshold for the first time, could become decisive if the final count changes the balance of power.
Opportunity leader Qiulae Wong said her group was meeting in Wellington to prepare for its arrival in Parliament. She said she had received calls from Hipkins and Green Party co-leader Chloe Swarbrick, but not yet from Luxon.
The political uncertainty is also attracting the attention of markets, particularly around the New Zealand dollar and fiscal policy. Westpac chief economist Kelly Eckhold believes markets will remain attentive in the coming weeks, while the defeat of Finance Minister Nicola Willis raises the question of her successor.
