The story so far
written Nov 7What is happening
The National Party, ACT New Zealand, and New Zealand First hold a projected 67-seat majority in a 131-seat parliament as preliminary counting concludes 14. This slim margin determines whether Christopher Luxon can form a government or if the left-wing bloc, currently at 57 seats, can narrow the gap through special votes 12. The Opportunity Party has entered parliament for the first time with 5.96% of the vote, securing seven projected seats 14.
Labour and the Green Party currently hold 29.36% and 13.30% of the vote respectively, while National sits at 29.22% 1. Because 11 overhang seats have expanded the house, a party or coalition needs 66 seats to command a majority 12. Ten electorate seats are currently held by margins of fewer than 2,000 votes 3.
What to watch
The Electoral Commission is scheduled to release the official final results on November 27 23. This release follows the counting of special votes, which historically favor Labour and the Green Party 3.
Confirmation of the final seat distribution in Parliament will follow the official count. The completion and reporting of any judicial recounts would then settle the final tallies. The formal swearing-in of the new government will occur after coalition negotiations, which leaders say will begin once final figures are confirmed 2.
Read the full brief · how we got here
How we got here
New Zealand voters used the Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) system to cast two votes, one for a local candidate and one for a party 6. Preliminary results were tallied on election night, November 7, covering 99.8% of the vote 14.
Special votes, which include ballots cast by voters outside their home electorate or from overseas, typically account for a significant portion of the final total 36. These votes must be verified against the electoral roll before being counted, a process that takes approximately three weeks 6.
References · 5
- 1electionresults.govt.nz — Election - Overall Results
- 2theguardian.com — New Zealand election 2026 live results: Labour draws level ...
- 3newsroom.co.nz — Live election cover: Dead heat – but overhangs threaten ...
- 4rnz.co.nz — 2026 election results in full | RNZ
- 6elections.nz — Media resources | Elections NZ
What would close this
0 of 4 metTimeline
1newest firstWhen we started following: National-led bloc holds narrow lead as preliminary New Zealand election results project 131-seat parliament
Preliminary results from the 2026 General Election show the National Party and its potential coalition partners holding a slim majority with 99.8% of votes counted 14. The National Party (29.22%), ACT New Zealand (10.92%), and New Zealand First (9.78%) are projected to hold a combined 67 seats in a parliament expanded to 131 seats due to 11 overhang seats 124. The left-wing bloc, comprising Labour (29.36%), the Green Party (13.30%), and Te Pāti Māori (0.57%), currently holds 57 projected seats 12. The Opportunity Party has entered parliament for the first time with 5.96% of the vote, yielding seven projected seats 14.
Final results are scheduled for release on November 27 after the counting of special votes 23. These votes, which traditionally favor Labour and the Greens, could alter the final seat allocation and the ten electorate seats currently held by margins of fewer than 2,000 votes 3. Neither National leader Christopher Luxon nor Labour leader Chris Hipkins has claimed victory or conceded, citing the need for negotiations once final figures are confirmed 2.