One of the contentious parts of New Zealand’s MMP electoral system is the party vote threshold, currently set at 5%, which is a barrier to the emergence of new political parties. For those that don’t want the threshold lowered, Ed Hitchcock proposes an alternative.   The simple way to resolve the problems of the threshold …

The Greens are at a crossroads. The direction they take in the next few days may have significant consequences, not just for the country and the shape of the Government, but also for the future of the Greens themselves. Currently, the Labour and Green negotiating teams are behind closed doors coming up with a deal, …

Jacinda Ardern has made New Zealanders feel safe. Josh Van Veen looks at psychological understandings of leadership to help explain the ongoing success of Labour in this election campaign.   Simon Bridges could have been the Prime Minister. Opinion polls in February suggested a close election, with Colmar Brunton giving the centre-right National/ACT bloc a marginal …

If you’re still on the fence about how to vote, Liam Hehir says it’s probably more important for you to vote on the basis of your principles, and he offers a way to think about how these principles might align with the main party options.   Still undecided? Here’s how to make your mind up …

Your choice of who to vote for could make a real difference. Electoral law expert Graeme Edgeler suggests you make an informed choice, and he goes through a variety of different ways to think about your voting options.   The New Zealand general election is being held next Saturday, the 17th of October. Voting is …

As the public decide who to vote for, the matter of whether wealthy interests have been able to influence Government decisions has arisen once again. This relates to controversy from late last year about whether junior coalition partner New Zealand First is using their fundraising mechanism to illegally hide the influence of wealthy donors. Looking …

Liam Hehir votes National, and his wife votes Labour and Green. In this column he laments the increasingly common practice of limiting your relationship – or even friendship – options to ideological sympaticos, and he reveals the secrets of a successful politically-mixed marriage.   There are few things written more deeply on the human heart …

Is the 2020 election result really the foregone conclusion that the polls and commentators are suggesting? Josh Van Veen suggests otherwise, pointing to some of the shortcomings of opinion polling, which could have some politicians saying “bugger the pollsters” on election night.   In November 1993, opinion polls foretold a comfortable victory for the incumbent …