Party leaders have had mixed reactions to the latest 1News Verian poll released this evening.
In the poll, Labour shot up to 33%, while National’s Christopher Luxon has fallen to his worst preferred prime minister result in two years at 20%.
National’s party support remained steady at 34%.
Ahead of the poll’s release to the public, 1News asked party leaders for their thoughts on the results.
National Party
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon declined to directly address questions about his declining popularity.
“It’s not about me or the polls. It’s really about the New Zealand people and I’m working incredibly hard to make sure that we are fixing the economy.
“We’ve got the right long-term plan and importantly we’ve got great days ahead of us and, ultimately, the New Zealand people will make that decision in 2026.”
Luxon said he believed voters understood the pressure the Government was under.
“Voters understand it’s been a really difficult time. We’ve dealt with a recession. We’ve dealt with the Covid hangover. We’ve dealt with international uncertainty. But we’re the right Government to be able to navigate New Zealand through some choppy waters to get to the other side, which I’m pretty excited about.
“It’s a country filled with a tremendous amount of potential. Our job is to put the long-term plan in place so that we can get ourselves there to realise all the potential that’s in this great place.”
The rise and fall of the public’s preference for leader, according to the latest 1News/Verian poll. (Source: 1News)
The Prime Minister also declined to comment on New Zealand First’s rise, but said he was proud of how his coalition Government was working together. He brushed off Labour’s poll rise saying he didn’t think about them.
Labour Party
Meanwhile, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins expressed optimism with his party’s result.
“I’ve set out Labour’s priorities are jobs, health, homes and re-election on the cost of living. And I think New Zealanders can see that the National Party’s taking New Zealand backwards on all of those issues.”
Hipkins said he believed the Prime Minister was out of touch.
“I think New Zealanders can see that the things that Christopher Luxon said he was going to fix are actually getting worse under his leadership.”
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick said over the weekend at her parties AGM she would be interested in the finance portfolio.
However Hipkins appeared to rule it out today when questioned by 1News.
“Look, I’m not divvying out portfolios before the election has even taken place but, if I am Prime Minister, Barbara Edmonds will be the Minister of Finance.”
New Zealand First
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters appeared to be happy with his result, when interviewed by 1News, but didn’t address it directly.
“Well, we’re out there talking to ordinary New Zealanders in packed halls all over the country and turning your polls into confetti.”
Peters had a similar response when asked whether he was pleased New Zealand First was the second highest polling coalition member.
“The reality is that the people aren’t interested in your polls, they’re interested in outcomes and parliament paying attention to their concerns and hearing them.”
ACT Party
ACT Party leader David Seymour said the poll showed the Government was under “a lot of pressure”.
“People are having a long cold winter, and they’re voting on the economy, so it doesn’t surprise me to see the Government under pressure.
“We’re in the middle of a repair job, and you don’t judge your electrician or mechanic when they’re halfway through fixing it. You judge them when you turn your light on or get your car back out of the garage. That’s where we expect to be judged.”
On why Labour had risen in the poll, Seymour said some people were moving between Labour and the Green Party.
“I feel sorry for those people. There’s better options out there, guys.
“We need real economic common sense because you can’t get richer just by taxing money off other people, just like you can’t get rich by selling houses to each other. What you need is real economic growth.
If an election were to be held today, which parties would be able to form a government? (Source: 1News)
“That means less government waste, better regulation, less red tape, allowing people to win in their own way so we can all get wealthier together.”
Green Party
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick said her party was feeling “incredibly strong” after her party’s annual general meeting over the weekend.
“We’re really proud of the fact that we’ve put out four substantive policy documents showing New Zealander’s the kind of world that we can create, where we rapidly reduce climate changing emissions, where we rapidly reduce the cost of living, but also increase our quality of life…”
On why her party’s support fell by 2% in the poll, Swarbrick said “people are the polls”.
“What we’re focused on doing is getting out there, working with people to recognise their power.
“We’ve been counted out before, in Auckland Central, in Wellington Central, and in Rongotai, and we have made history by mobilising regular people and connecting with them on the issues that really matter.
“We’re really proud to have been setting the agenda, New Zealanders know precisely on where the Green Party stands. They know the Green Party has a solid plan to rapidly reduce climate changing emissions, to reduce the cost of living, and increase the quality of life.
“We’d invite all parties to come to the table with evidence-based policies, because we need a meaningful debate here. New Zealanders are sick and tired of the blame game.”
1News approached Te Pāti Māori for comment on the poll, but did not receive a response at the time of publishing.
