Labour and National a few thousand votes apart as final count nears

Preliminary results from New Zealand's 2026 election have Labour and National separated by only a few thousand votes. It is not yet known whether Parliament will have an even or odd number of members. That will not be clear until the final count, due on 27 November.

RNZ defines a hung parliament as one evenly divided between factions, where no one group can form a majority. New Zealand's Parliament has a base of 120 MPs before any overhang seats are added, which makes a 60-60 split between two blocs possible. Overhang seats are extra seats added to Parliament under MMP, the mixed-member proportional system.

RNZ's tally of the preliminary vote indicated a Parliament of 131 seats, including 11 overhang seats. Special votes are to be counted by 27 November.

New Zealand has seen this situation before. Under the old first-past-the-post system, the 1922 and 1928 elections left no single party with a majority in Parliament. In 2017 and 2023, a coalition of parties was formed to create a majority.

Until a government is formed, the current government remains in charge under the caretaker convention, a long-standing practice. Significant decisions are deferred or handled with a light touch.

Coalition talks to form a government have lasted from just over a week to nearly two months, according to RNZ.

New Zealand's waka-jumping law, which governs MPs switching parties, prevents MPs from crossing sides to break a parliamentary stalemate.

MMP, the system that produces these outcomes, is marking its 30th anniversary.