Summarised by Centrist
Winston Peters and NZ First are emerging as the quiet winners in the latest 1News-Verian poll, picking up support while every other coalition partner loses ground.
The party rose one point to 8 percent, translating to 10 seats, equal to ACT and just three behind Labour’s Greens-aligned partner.
The gain gives Peters even more leverage in the governing coalition and positions NZ First as a potential fulcrum of power in an increasingly fragmented Parliament.
Despite drops for National, down 2 points to 34 percent, and ACT, down 1 to 8 percent, the coalition would still hold 63 seats, enough for a governing majority.
Labour also slipped 3 points to 29 percent, continuing a long slide. The Greens rose 2 points to 12 percent, or 15 seats, and Te Pāti Māori edged up 1 point to 4 percent, or 6 seats, helping keep the opposition competitive with 58 seats overall.
Preferred prime minister rankings remained relatively static. Christopher Luxon held steady at 23 percent, while Chris Hipkins dropped to 19 percent. Peters dipped slightly to 6 percent but remains the third-most preferred candidate, ahead of Chlöe Swarbrick on 5 percent and David Seymour on 4 percent.
Eleven percent of respondents were undecided or refused to answer, a large group that could swing future results.
