2020 New Zealand general election

The 2020 New Zealand general election was held on 17 October 2020. Voters elected 120 members to the House of Representatives, 72 from single-member electorates and 48 from closed party lists. Two referendums, one on the personal use of cannabis and one on euthanasia, were also held on the same day. The governing Labour Party, led by incumbent Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, won the election in a landslide victory against the National Party. The next election will be held in November 2020.

About 2020 New Zealand general election in brief

Summary 2020 New Zealand general electionThe 2020 New Zealand general election was held on 17 October 2020. Voters elected 120 members to the House of Representatives, 72 from single-member electorates and 48 from closed party lists. Two referendums, one on the personal use of cannabis and one on euthanasia, were also held on the same day. The governing Labour Party, led by incumbent Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, won the election in a landslide victory against the National Party. Labour won 65 seats, enough for a majority government. It is the first time that a party has won enough seats to govern alone since the mixed-member proportional representation system was introduced in 1996. Populist nationalist party New Zealand First suffered its worst-ever result, losing all their seats. On 22 May 2020, a leadership election occurred following two low polls for the National party. Todd Muller replaced Simon Bridges as leader and Leader of the Opposition, and Nikki Kaye replaced Paula Bennett as deputy leader of the party. Muller himself then resigned on 14 July 2020 citing health reasons, leading to another leadership election later that day, in which Judith Collins was voted into the National leadership position. The next election will be held in November 2020. The boundaries for the next election are required to be redrawn after the most recent census in each redrawn New Zealand after each census. The most recent New Zealand census was held in October 2018, and the boundaries for each redorate are required for the election to be held after the next census in November 2018.

The results of the election were released on 6 November, with the Labour victory, which gave them a landslide landslide, giving them 65 seats. This is also the best nationwide result for a main party since 1951, and the first time Labour has won an absolute majority of the vote since 1946. Conversely, this election was the second-worst result for National Party, which performed poorer only in the 2002 general election. The 2017 election also marked the first. time under MMP in New Zealand that aParty led a government without commanding the plurality of party vote. The final results of 2017 election gave National 56 seats, while Labour and the Greens combined had 54 seats. The Māori Party re-entered Parliament with two seats after Rawiri Waititi won the Waiariki electorate. The Greens’ Chlöe Swarbrick won the Auckland Central seat vacated by National’s retiring NikkiKaye with a margin of 1,068 votes over Labour’s Helen White. The Green Party’s James Shaw announced that his party would give confidence and supply to a Labour–NZ First government. On 19 October 2017, Winston Peters, leader of New Zealand. First, announced that he would form a coalition government with Labour. On the same. day, James Shaw said he would give his party to Labour–New Zealand First. Thus, Labour regained power after nine years in opposition, ending the Fifth National Government which had been in power for three terms. The election also saw a change in the leadership of National to Judith Collins, who was replaced by Todd Muller.