New Zealand General Election Ends Without a Clear Winner Yet

New Zealand – (Special Correspondent/Web Desk) – New Zealand general election has ended without a clear winner. Neither of the two big parties has enough seats to rule alone, so talks will now begin.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s National Party is the largest party. It won 42 seats, based on early results. That is still 19 seats short of a simple majority.

Labour, led by Chris Hipkins, took 36 seats. The Greens won 16. ACT has 13 seats and New Zealand First has 12. The Opportunity Party won 7, and Te Pāti Māori won 5.

If National joins forces with ACT and New Zealand First, it would hold a slim lead over the left-leaning bloc. However, a deal must still be agreed first.

Hipkins did not admit defeat. He said the “shape of the next government” may stay unclear “for a while”. He also said “the people have spoken”, but it may take longer to understand what they said.

Luxon thanked Hipkins for a “very hard-fought race”. He then spoke to his party members and said he was proud of everyone. He promised to run a caretaker government until the final results are confirmed.

The official result is due on 27 November. Luxon said real talks can only start after that date.

More than 99 percent of votes have been counted. National and Labour are almost level in vote share. Yet both parties have weak support by past standards, with a combined share of about 60 percent.

The campaign focused on the cost of living and unemployment. Hipkins said the next parliament will need everyone to compromise and find common ground.

For now, New Zealand must wait. The final count will decide who gets the first chance to form a government.