
New political poll: Christopher Luxon's popularity drops to lowest in two years, Labour sees party vote rise
The Green Party is down 2% to 10% while NZ First continues its upward trajectory, gaining 1% in the party vote to 9%. No movement for Act and Te Pāti Māori who both sit on 8% and 4%, respectively.
It comes after the Taxpayers' Union-Curia poll this morning showed the race between the centre-left and centre-right were neck-and-neck.
On those results, Labour had the most support on 33.6% (up 2 points), National was on 31.8% (down 2.1) and the Greens were up 0.4 to 9.8%.
Act dropped 0.5 to 8.6%, New Zealand First was down 2 points to 7.8% and Te Pāti Māori fell 0.3 to 3.2%. Just over 6% were undecided.
Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Converting those results into seats in the House, Labour would have 43, National would have 40, the Greens would have 12, Act would have 11, New Zealand First would have 10 and Te Pāti Māori would get six (presuming they kept their electorate seats).
This would put both the centre-left and the centre-right on 61 seats, meaning no side would have a majority to govern.
Looking at the Preferred Prime Minister stakes, National's Christopher Luxon was up 0.5 to 20.2%, matched by Labour's Chris Hipkins (who was up 0.6).
NZ First leader Winston Peters was down 1.1 points to 8.2%, the Greens' Chlöe Swarbrick was up 1 point to 8%, and Act leader David Seymour was up 0.5 to 6.2%.
Lara Greaves, associate professor in politics at Victoria University of Wellington, told Herald Now this morning that a first-term government would be expected to be polling better, but Labour also had work to do, with it yet to release any policies.
The latest Taxpayers' Union-Curia Poll was taken between August 3-5. The poll, conducted by phone and online, had a margin of error of +/- 3.1%.
Julia Gabel is a Wellington-based political reporter. She joined the Herald in 2020 and has most recently focused on data journalism.
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NZ Herald
4 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Government kicks can down the road on Palestinian statehood
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National's MPs are feeling the heat from their constituents, but it has some strong backers of Israel around the Cabinet table. Act, meanwhile, is more clearly unlikely to shift from New Zealand's current position. Its view is best summed up by MP Simon Court's contribution to a parliamentary debate last month, saying that recognising a Palestinian state would be viewed as 'a reward for acts of terrorism' committed by Hamas against Israel. NZ First's position is less clear. Peters has for a long time been a staunch supporter of Israel, but the fast-changing international position could see him change his mind. Peters is the conduit for MFAT's advice to the Cabinet, and that advice is likely to reflect the fast-changing international political situation, which has rendered New Zealand's 'when' not 'if' approach to Palestinian recognition untenable. Recognition, if it happens, has been a long time coming. Of the 193 United Nations states, 147 recognise a Palestinian state. 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That, plus Israel's inability to stop widespread starvation in the strip, has led the Greens and Te Pāti Māori to describe the situation as 'genocide'. The Government's position, as articulated by Peters, has been that New Zealand's longstanding support for a two-state solution means recognition of a Palestinian state is a matter of 'when' rather than 'if'. That position was a convenient one. It gives the Government something to say to the majority of states that do recognise Palestine, without doing the deed itself and risking the ire of Israel and its main backer, the United States. The United States isn't idle in its threats. Last month, when Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Canada would recognise a Palestinian state, President Donald Trump took to social media to say it would 'make it very hard for us to make a Trade Deal with them'. New Zealand's holding pattern has become untenable, both internationally and domestically. Since French President Emmanuel Macron announced in July that France will recognise Palestine, there has been a cascade of what our Government often calls 'like-minded' nations following suit, or threatening to. This made the Government's position challenging. It was happy being among several countries waiting for certain conditions to be met to recognise a Palestinian state, but being one of the last countries to recognise a Palestinian state is about as good as not recognising one at all. The decision of Australia, New Zealand's closest partner, on Monday to join them, was possibly the cherry on top. In the past, countries like New Zealand and Australia had been able to kick the can down the road, pointing to the lack of proper infrastructure in Palestine for recognition to take place. 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With polls on Monday showing the Government in trouble - including one poll showing a hung Parliament - it's possible that this selfish sentiment, as much as anything more altruistic, is driving some of this change, with anxiety in National's caucus room driving change at the Cabinet table.


NZ Herald
4 hours ago
- NZ Herald
New political poll: Christopher Luxon's popularity drops to lowest in two years, Labour sees party vote rise
For the party vote, National is on 34%, only a point ahead of the opposition. Labour gained 4% in the latest poll, sitting at 33%. The Green Party is down 2% to 10% while NZ First continues its upward trajectory, gaining 1% in the party vote to 9%. No movement for Act and Te Pāti Māori who both sit on 8% and 4%, respectively. It comes after the Taxpayers' Union-Curia poll this morning showed the race between the centre-left and centre-right were neck-and-neck. On those results, Labour had the most support on 33.6% (up 2 points), National was on 31.8% (down 2.1) and the Greens were up 0.4 to 9.8%. Act dropped 0.5 to 8.6%, New Zealand First was down 2 points to 7.8% and Te Pāti Māori fell 0.3 to 3.2%. Just over 6% were undecided. Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. Photo / Mark Mitchell Converting those results into seats in the House, Labour would have 43, National would have 40, the Greens would have 12, Act would have 11, New Zealand First would have 10 and Te Pāti Māori would get six (presuming they kept their electorate seats). This would put both the centre-left and the centre-right on 61 seats, meaning no side would have a majority to govern. Looking at the Preferred Prime Minister stakes, National's Christopher Luxon was up 0.5 to 20.2%, matched by Labour's Chris Hipkins (who was up 0.6). NZ First leader Winston Peters was down 1.1 points to 8.2%, the Greens' Chlöe Swarbrick was up 1 point to 8%, and Act leader David Seymour was up 0.5 to 6.2%. Lara Greaves, associate professor in politics at Victoria University of Wellington, told Herald Now this morning that a first-term government would be expected to be polling better, but Labour also had work to do, with it yet to release any policies. The latest Taxpayers' Union-Curia Poll was taken between August 3-5. The poll, conducted by phone and online, had a margin of error of +/- 3.1%. Julia Gabel is a Wellington-based political reporter. She joined the Herald in 2020 and has most recently focused on data journalism.

RNZ News
7 hours ago
- RNZ News
Watch: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon holds post-Cabinet media briefing
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is holding a post-Cabinet media conference as a new political poll shows the government is struggling to make headway amidst a cost of living crisis. Earlier on Monday, Luxon told Morning Report that people wanted the government to fix the economy. Big cities in New Zealand were struggling, while primary industry was showing signs of recovery, he said. The latest Taxpayers' Union-Curia Opinion poll predicts that if an election were held now there would be a hung Parliament. Labour has overtaken National as the largest party, gaining 2 points to 33.6 percent, while National drops 2.1 points to 31.8 percent. If an election were held today, the centre-right bloc would lose four MPs for a total 61 seats, while the centre-left bloc would gain four MP and also reach a total 61 seats. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.