LAST UPDATE | 14 Oct 2023

VOTING HAS CLOSED in New Zealand’s general election and although ballot counting is still underway, incumbent Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has conceded defeat. 

Hipkins, who replaced Jacinda Ardern this year, said he was “not in a position to form a government” and he congratulated incoming conservative premier Chris Luxon.

“The result tonight is not one that any of us wanted, but I want you to be proud of what we achieved over the last six years,” Hipkins told Labour supporters in Wellington.

With about a quarter of the votes counted, former businessman Luxon is poised to become the nation’s next prime minister.

Luxon, a former airline executive, said New Zealanders had “reached for hope and voted for change”.

The National Party and its coalition partner ACT were projected to win 61 seats with 97 percent of the vote tallied – enough to secure a majority in New Zealand’s 120-seat parliament.

“On current numbers, it looks like National and ACT will be in position to form the next government,” Luxon added.

The election campaign had been dominated by an increasingly difficult economic situation and a spike in the cost of living that has hit New Zealanders hard.

“My pledge to you is that National will deliver for every New Zealander,” Luxon said, promising to “build the economy and deliver tax relief”.

The 53-year-old, who claims to sleep only five hours a night, completed a rapid political ascent. Only four years ago he was working in the private sector.

He spent seven years as chief executive of Air New Zealand, and was hailed a future leader upon entering politics in 2019.

In their first 100 days in office, National plan a crackdown on youth offending, a ban on cellphones in schools, and a scrapping of the Labour government’s planned fuel tax hikes.

“New Zealanders are going to wake up to not only a new day, but the promise of a new government and a new direction,” Luxon told supporters in Auckland.

“I cannot wait to get stuck in and get to work because New Zealand has chosen change and we will get this country back on track.”

Both Luxon and Hipkins had tried to woo voters with promises to ease surging petrol prices, fix chronic housing shortages, and halt the skyrocketing prices of staple foods.

“We will bring down the cost of living. We will restore law and order. We will deliver better health care and we will educate our children so that they can grow up to live the lives they dream of,” Luxon added.