2011 New Zealand general election: Difference between revisions

New Zealand general election, 2011
elected members →
All 120 seats (plus one overhang seat) in the New Zealand House of Representatives ; 61 seats are needed for a majority
	Opinion polls
Turnout	2,236,276 (73.23%)
Prime Minister before election; John Key; National	Prime Minister-elect ; TBD;

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Revision as of 03:11, 29 November 2011

The 2011 New Zealand general election on Saturday 26 November 2011^[1] determined the membership of the 50th New Zealand Parliament.

One hundred and twenty-one MPs were elected to the New Zealand House of Representatives, 70 from single-member electorates, including one overhang seat, and 51 from party lists. New Zealand since 1996 has used the Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) voting system, giving voters two votes: one for a political party and the other for their local electorate MP. A referendum on the voting method was held at the same time as the election,^[2] with early votes suggesting the MMP system will be kept.

A total of 3,053,705 people were registered to vote in the election,^[3] with over 2.2 million votes cast and a turnout of 73.23% – the lowest turnout since 1887.^[4] On election night, the incumbent National Party, led by John Key, gained the plurality with 48.0% of the party vote and 60 seats, one seat short of holding a majority. The opposing Labour Party, lead by Phil Goff, lost ground winning 27.1% of the vote and 34 seats, while the Green Party won 10.6% of the vote and 13 seats - the largest share of the party vote for a minor party since 1996. New Zealand First, having won no seats in 2008 due to failing to reach the 5% threshold, made a comeback with 6.8% of the vote entitling them to eight seats.

National's confidence and supply partners in the 49th Parliament meanwhile suffered losses. ACT New Zealand won less than a third of the party vote it received in 2008, reducing from five seats to just one. The Māori Party was reduced from five seats to three, as the party vote split between the Māori Party and former Māori Party MP Hone Harawira's Mana Party. United Future lost party votes, but retained their one seat in Parliament.

Background

Election date

The election date was set as Saturday 26 November 2011, as predicted by the media.^[5] Breaking with tradition, Prime Minister John Key announced the election date in February. Traditionally, the election date is a closely guarded secret, announced as late as possible. The date follows the tradition of holding the general election on the last Saturday of November unless the schedule is interrupted by a snap election or to circumvent holding a by-election.

The Governor General must issue writs for an election within seven days of the expiration or dissolution of the current Parliament.^[6] Under section 17 of the Constitution Act 1986, Parliament expires three years "from the day fixed for the return of the writs issued for the last preceding general election of members of the House of Representatives, and no longer." The writs for the previous election were returnable on 27 November 2008.^[7] As a result, the 49th Parliament will expire, if not dissolved earlier, on 27 November 2011. As that day is a Sunday, the last available working day is 25 November 2011. Consequently, the last day for issuance of writs of election is 2 December 2011. The writs must be returned within 50 days of their issuance with the last possible working day being 20 January 2012.^[8] Because polling day must be a Saturday,^[8] the last possible polling date for the election was 7 January 2012, allowing time for the counting of special votes.^[9] The Christmas/New Year holiday period made the last realistic date for the election Saturday 10 December 2011. The Rugby World Cup 2011 was hosted by New Zealand between 9 September and 23 October 2011, and ruled out all the possible election dates in this period. This left two possible windows for the general election: on or before 2 September and 29 October to 10 December.

2 February 2011	Prime Minister John Key announces election to be held on 26 November
6 October 2011	Last sitting day for the 49th Parliament
20 October 2011	Governor General Jerry Mateparae dissolves the 49th Parliament
26 October 2011	Writ Day - Governor General issues formal direction to the Electoral Commission to hold the election. Electoral roll closes for printing (all people enrolling after this date must cast special declaration votes).
2 November 2011	Details of candidates for election and polling places released.
9 November 2011	Advance and overseas voting begins.
25 November 2011	Advance voting ends. Overseas voting ends 4:00pm local time.
26 November 2011	Election Day - polling places open 9:00am to 7:00pm. Preliminary results released progressively after 7:00pm.
10 December 2011	Official results released
15 December 2011	Writ for election returned; official declaration of elected members

Source: ^[10]

49th Parliament, 2008–2011

Following the 2008 general election, National Party leader and Prime Minister John Key announced a confidence and supply agreement with ACT, the Māori Party and United Future to form the Fifth National Government. These arrangements gave the National-led government a majority of 16 seats, with 69 on confidence-and-supply in the 122-seat Parliament.

Labour, Greens and the Progressives are all in opposition, although only the Labour and Progressive parties formally constitute the formal Opposition; the Greens have a minor agreement with the government but are not committed to confidence and supply support.

At the 2008 election, the National Party had 58 seats, the Labour Party 43 seats, Green Party 9 seats, ACT and Māori Party five each, and Progressive and United Future one each. During the Parliament session, two members defected from their parties – Chris Carter was expelled from Labour in August 2010, and Hone Harawira left the Māori Party in February 2011. Carter continued as an independent, while Harawira resigned from parliament to recontest his Te Tai Tokerau electorate in a by-election under his newly formed Mana Party. Two MPs resigned from Parliament before the end of the session, John Carter of National and Chris Carter, but as they resigned within 6 months of an election, their seats remained vacant.

At the dissolution of the 49th parliament on 20 October 2011, National held 57 seats, Labour 42 seats, Green 9 seats, ACT 5 seats, Māori 4 seats, and Progressive, United Future and Mana one each.

Marginal seats in 2008

At the 2008 election, the following seats were won by a majority of less than 1000 votes:

Electorate	Member of Parliament	Incumbent party		Majority	Second place
New Plymouth	Jonathan Young style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #00529F;" data-sort-value="New Zealand National Party" \|	National	105	Harry Duynhoven style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #D82A20;" data-sort-value="New Zealand Labour Party" \|	Labour
Waimakariri	Clayton Cosgrove style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #D82A20;" data-sort-value="New Zealand Labour Party" \|	Labour	390	Kate Wilkinson style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #00529F;" data-sort-value="New Zealand National Party" \|	National
Waitakere	Paula Bennett style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #00529F;" data-sort-value="New Zealand National Party" \|	National	632	Lynne Pillay style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #D82A20;" data-sort-value="New Zealand Labour Party" \|	Labour
Rimutaka	Chris Hipkins style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #D82A20;" data-sort-value="New Zealand Labour Party" \|	Labour	753	Richard Whiteside style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #00529F;" data-sort-value="New Zealand National Party" \|	National
Hauraki-Waikato	Nanaia Mahuta style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #D82A20;" data-sort-value="New Zealand Labour Party" \|	Labour	888	Angeline Greensill style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #B2001A;" data-sort-value="Māori Party" \|	Māori Party
Christchurch Central	Brendon Burns style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #D82A20;" data-sort-value="New Zealand Labour Party" \|	Labour	935	Nicky Wagner style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #00529F;" data-sort-value="New Zealand National Party" \|	National
West Coast-Tasman	Chris Auchinvole style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #00529F;" data-sort-value="New Zealand National Party" \|	National	971	Damien O'Connor style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #D82A20;" data-sort-value="New Zealand Labour Party" \|	Labour

MPs retiring in 2011

Nineteen MPs, including all five ACT MPs and the sole Progressive MP, intended to retire at the end of the 49th Parliament. One of the ACT MPs, John Boscawen, contested Tāmaki, but did not expect to win and was not on the party list. National MP Allan Peachey died three weeks before the election.

Party		Name	Electorate
rowspan=5 style="background-color: Template:ACT New Zealand/meta/color" \|	ACT	Roger Douglas	(List)	^[11]
Rodney Hide		Epsom	^[12]^[13]
Heather Roy		(List)	^[14]
Hilary Calvert		(List)	^[15]
John Boscawen		(List)	^[16]
rowspan=2 style="background-color: Template:Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand/meta/color" \|	Green	Sue Kedgley	(List)	^[17]^[18]
Keith Locke	Green	(List)	^[19]
style="background-color: Template:New Zealand Progressive Party/meta/color" \|	Progressive	Jim Anderton	Wigram	^[20]
rowspan=5 style="background-color: Template:New Zealand Labour Party/meta/color" \|	Labour	Ashraf Choudhary	(List)	^[21]
George Hawkins		Manurewa	^[22]
Pete Hodgson		Dunedin North	^[23]
Lynne Pillay		(List)	^[24]
Mita Ririnui		(List)	^[25]
rowspan=6 style="background-color: Template:New Zealand National Party/meta/color" \|	National	John Carter	Northland	^[26]
Sandra Goudie		Coromandel	^[27]
Wayne Mapp		North Shore	^[28]
Simon Power		Rangitīkei	^[29]
Allan Peachey		Tāmaki	^[30]
Georgina te Heuheu		(List)	^[31]

Electorate boundaries

Advance voting in campervans in Christchurch. Campervans were used as many of the polling stations used at previous elections are unavailable due to the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes.

Electorates in the election were the same as at the 2008 election.

Electorates and their boundaries in New Zealand are reviewed every five years after the Census of Population and Dwellings. The last review took place in 2007, following the 2006 census. The next review is not due until 2014, following the 2013 census (the 2011 census was cancelled due to the 22 February 2011 Christchurch earthquake).

Election procedures

On 17 September 2010, Justice Minister Simon Power announced the government was introducing legislation making this the first election where voters would be able to re-enrol completely on-line. Enrolments on-line beforehand still required the election form to be printed, signed, and sent by post.^[32]

Voters in the Christchurch region were encouraged to cast their votes before election day if they had doubt about being able to get to a polling booth on election day or to avoid long queues, as many traditional polling booths are unavailable due to the earthquakes. Nineteen advance voting stations were made available, with three of them campervans, which are usually only used in rural areas of New Zealand. The Christchurch Central electorate, for example, has 33 polling stations in 2011 compared to 45 in 2008.^[33]

Contesting parties and candidates

At the close of nominations, 544 individuals had been nominated to contest the election, down from 682 at the 2008 election. Of those, 91 were list-only, 73 were electorate-only (43 from registered parties, 17 independents, and 13 from non-registered parties), and 380 contested both list and electorate.^[34]

Political parties registered with the Electoral Commission on Writ Day can contest the general election as a party, allowing it to submit a party list to contend the party vote, and have a party election expenses limit in addition to individual candidate limits. At Writ Day, sixteen political parties were registered to contend the general election.^[35] At the close of nominations, thirteen registered parties had put forward a party list to the Commission to contest the party vote, down from nineteen in 2008.^[36]^[34]

Party		Leader(s)	Party vote % (2008 election)	Seats (October 2011)	Electorate candidates	Party list candidates
Parties with seats in the 49th Parliament
	ACT	Don Brash	3.65	5	50	55
	Green	Russel Norman / Metiria Turei	6.72	9	59	61
	Labour	Phil Goff	33.99	42	70	65
	Mana	Hone Harawira	–^[a]	1	21	20
	Māori Party	Pita Sharples / Tariana Turia	2.39	4	11	17
	National	John Key	44.93	57	63	65
	United Future New Zealand	Peter Dunne	0.87	1	19	15
Other parties
	Alliance	Andrew McKenzie / Kay Murray	0.08	–	5	14
	Conservative Party of New Zealand	Colin Craig	–^[a]	–	52	30
	Democrats	Stephnie de Ruyter	0.05	–	14	24
	Legalise Cannabis	Michael Appleby	0.41	–	18	28
	Libertarianz	Richard McGrath	0.05	–	9	27
	NZ First	Winston Peters	4.07	–	31	33
^[a] Party was founded after the 2008 election

The Kiwi Party, the New Citizen Party and the Progressive Party were registered, but did not contend the election under their own banners. The Kiwi Party and the New Citizen Party stood candidates for the Conservative Party.^[37]

In addition to the registered parties and their candidates, thirteen candidates from nine non-registered parties and seventeen independent candidates contested electorates:

Party		Electorates contested
	Human Rights	Auckland Central
	Communist League	Manukau East, Mount Roskill
	Nga Iwi Morehu	Hauraki-Waikato, Te Tai Hauauru
	Pirate	Hamilton East, Wellington Central
	Sovereignty	Clutha-Southland, Te Tai Hauauru
	Economic Euthenics	Wigram
	New Economics	Wellington Central
	Restore All Things In Christ	Dunedin South
	Youth	West Coast-Tasman
	Independent	Christchurch Central Coromandel Epsom ×2 Hamilton West ×2 New Plymouth Ōtaki Rangitikei ×2 Rongotai Tamaki ×2 Tauranga Waitaki Wellington Central Ikaroa-Rawhiti

Campaigning

Epsom and the Tea Tape scandal

On 11 November, National Party leader John Key met with John Banks, the ACT candidate for Epsom, over a cup of tea at a cafe in Newmarket to send a signal to Epsom voters about voting tactically.^[38] The National Party passively campaigned for Epsom voters to give their electorate vote to ACT while giving their party vote to National. This would allow ACT to bypass the 5% party vote threshold and enter Parliament by winning an electorate seat, thereby providing a coalition partner for National. However, in October and November 2011, polls of the Epsom electorate vote taken by various companies showed that the National candidate for Epsom, Paul Goldsmith,^[39] was leading in the polls and likely to win the seat. During the meeting, the two politicians' discussion was recorded by a device left on the table in a black pouch. The recording tapes were leaked to the Herald on Sunday newspaper, and subsequently created a media frenzy over the content of the unreleased tapes.^[40]

Debates

TVNZ held three party leaders' debates: two between the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, and one between the leaders of the smaller parties.^[41] TV3 hosted a single debate between the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition.^[42]

Date	Host	Leaders	Presenter / Moderator
30 October	TVNZ	Don Brash, Metiria Turei, Hone Harawira, Pita Sharples, Peter Dunne	Paul Holmes
Highlights – The debate included a variety of topics, ranging from the age of superannuation eligibility to youth unemployment to asset sales. Peter Dunne won the debate, with Metiria Turei coming second.^[43]
31 October	TVNZ	John Key, Phil Goff	Mark Sainsbury / Guyon Espiner
Highlights – The economy, asset sales, the cost of living, education, welfare, environment and mining, crisis management and recovery, leadership and New Zealand's involvement in Afghanistan. A text poll conducted alongside gave the debate to John Key with 61%.^[44]
16 November	TVNZ	Don Brash, Russel Norman, Hone Harawira, Pita Sharples, Winston Peters, Peter Dunne	Mark Sainsbury / Guyon Espiner
Highlights – The debate included the economy, the age of superannuation eligibility, Māori affairs, the environment, the Emissions Trading Scheme, the Teapot Tape scandal, the voting system referendum, and potential partners after the election. A text poll conducted alongside gave the debate to Winston Peters with 36%, with Hone Harawira coming second with 27%.^[44]^[45]
21 November	TV3	John Key, Phil Goff	John Campbell
Highlights – TBC
23 November	TVNZ	John Key, Phil Goff	Mark Sainsbury / Guyon Espiner
Highlights –

Pre-election coalition preferences

The National Party ruled out working with New Zealand First's Winston Peters after the election.^[46] ACT confirmed it would work with National after the elections.

The Labour Party leader Phil Goff ruled out a coalition agreement with Hone Harawira's new Mana Party, but left open the possibility of reaching an agreement with New Zealand First.^[47]

In the 16 November minor parties debate, leaders from the minor parties stated their preferences:^[44]

Green would work in a coalition government with Labour, and would not completely rule out working with National.
Mana would not work in a coalition government with National and/or ACT
Māori would not work in a coalition government with ACT.
No preference was stated for New Zealand First
United Future ruled out working with Labour

Opinion polling

Graphical representation of poll results

The nature of the Mixed Member Proportional voting system, whereby the share of seats in Parliament a party gets is determined by its share of the nationwide party vote, means opinion polling in New Zealand is fairly accurate in predicting the outcome of an election compared with other countries.

Opinion polls have been undertaken periodically since the 2008 election by MediaWorks New Zealand (3 News Reid Research), The New Zealand Herald (Herald Digipoll), Roy Morgan Research, and Television New Zealand (One News Colmar Brunton), with polls having also being conducted by Fairfax Media (Fairfax Media Research International) since July 2011. The graph on the right shows the collated results of all five polls for parties that have polled above the 5% electoral threshold.

After the 2008 election, National gained in popularity, and since 2009 has regularly polled in the 50-55% range, peaking at 55% in August 2009 and October 2011, before plummeting to 51% in the week before the election. Labour and Green meanwhile kept steady after the election at 31-34% and 7-8% respectively until July 2011, when Labour started to lose support, falling to just 26% before the election. The majority of Labour's loss has been the Green's gain, rising to 13% in the same period. No other party has peaked on average above 5% since the 2008 election.

Results

The Electoral Commission will gradually release preliminary results from the election as they become available after polling places close at 7:00pm on election day. The Commission hopes to have all advance votes counted and results available by 8:30pm, half of the polling places counted by 10:00pm, and all of the polling places counted by 11:30pm.^[10]

Parliamentary parties

Template:New Zealand election, 2011

Non-parliamentary parties

Template:New Zealand election - minor parties, 2011

Electorate results

Prior to the election, the National Party held the majority of the electorate seats with 41. Labour held 20 seats, Māori held four seats, and ACT, Mana, Progressive, United Future and an ex-Labour independent held one seat each.

On election night, National held steady on the electorates it held with 41. Labour gained two seats to hold 22 electorates, Māori lost one seat to hold three, and ACT, Mana, and United Future held steady with one seat each. The seat of Christchurch Central is undecided, with Labour's Brendon Burns and National's Nicky Wagner tied on 10,493 votes. A National or Labour candidate took second place in all the general electorates, except Tauranga, where it was New Zealand First's Brendan Horan, and Rodney, where it was Conservative Party leader Colin Craig.^[48]

In eleven electorates, the incumbents did not seek re-election, and new MPs were elected. In Coromandel, North Shore, Northland, Rangitikei, Rodney and Tamaki, the seats were passed from incumbent National MPs to new National MPs; in Epsom, the seat was passed from the incumbent ACT MP to the new ACT MP; and in Dunedin North and Manurewa, the seats were passed from incumbent Labour MPs to new Labour MPs. Labour also won Te Atatu from the retiring ex-Labour independent, and Wigram from the retiring Progressive MP.

Of the 59 seats where the incumbent sought re-election, only three changed hands. In West Coast-Tasman, Labour's Damien O'Connor regained the seat from National's Chris Auchinvole, who defeated him for the seat in 2008. In Waimakariri, National's Kate Wilkinson defeated Labour MP Clayton Cosgrove, and in Te Tai Tonga, Labour's Rino Tirikatene defeated Maori Party MP Rahui Katene. Despite losing their electorate seats, both Chris Auchinvole and Clayton Cosgrove were re-elected into parliament via the party list.

Aside from Christchurch Central, two electorates on election night returned with a majority to the winner of less than 500 votes, meaning they could potentially swing with the counting of special votes – Waimakariri (395) and Waitakere (349). Three more electorates had a majority of less than 1000: Auckland Central (535), Tamaki Makaurau (746), and Te Tai Tokerau (874).^[49]

Electorate	Incumbent		Winner		Majority	Runner-up
General electorates
Auckland Central #00529F	Nikki Kaye (Nat)			535 #D82A20	Jacinda Ardern (Lab)^†
Bay of Plenty #00529F	Tony Ryall (Nat)			16,720 #D82A20	Carol Devoy-Heena (Lab)
Botany #00529F	Jami-Lee Ross (Nat)			10,054 #D82A20	Chao-Fu Wu (Lab)
Christchurch Central #D82A20	Brendon Burns (Lab) parameter 1 should be a party name.	Brendon Burns (Lab) Nicky Wagner (Nat)	0
Christchurch East #D82A20	Lianne Dalziel (Lab)			4,954 #00529F	Aaron Gilmore (Nat)^†
Clutha-Southland #00529F	Bill English (Nat)			14,915 #D82A20	Tat Loo (Lab)
Coromandel #00529F	Sandra Goudie (Nat) #00529F	Scott Simpson (Nat)	11,800 #D82A20	Hugh Kininmonth (Lab)
Dunedin North #D82A20	Pete Hodgson (Lab) #D82A20	David Clark (Lab)	3,304 #00529F	Michael Woodhouse (Nat)^†
Dunedin South #D82A20	Clare Curran (Lab)			3,867 #00529F	Joanna Hayes (Nat)
East Coast #00529F	Anne Tolley (Nat)			4,487 #D82A20	Moana Mackey (Lab)^†
East Coast Bays #00529F	Murray McCully (Nat)			13,479 #D82A20	Vivienne Goldsmith
Epsom #FDE401	Rodney Hide (ACT) #FDE401	John Banks (ACT)	2,485 #00529F	Paul Goldsmith (Nat)^†
Hamilton East #00529F	David Bennett (Nat)			7,708 #D82A20	Sehai Orgad (Lab)
Hamilton West #00529F	Tim Macindoe (Nat)			4,059 #D82A20	Sue Moroney (Lab)^†
Helensville #00529F	John Key (Nat)			19,116 #D82A20	Jeremy Greenbrook-Held (Lab)
Hunua #00529F	Paul Hutchison (Nat)			15,514 #D82A20	Richard Hills (Lab)
Hutt South #D82A20	Trevor Mallard (Lab)			4,193 #00529F	Paul Quinn (Nat)
Ilam #00529F	Gerry Brownlee (Nat)			11,935 #D82A20	John Parsons (Lab)
Invercargill #00529F	Eric Roy (Nat)			5,766 #D82A20	Lesley Soper (Lab)
Kaikoura #00529F	Colin King (Nat)			10,534 #D82A20	Liz Collyns (Lab)
Mana #D82A20	Kris Faafoi (Lab)			1,857 #00529F	Hekia Parata (Nat)^†
Mangere #D82A20	Su'a William Sio (Lab)			13,356 #00529F	Claudette Hauiti (Nat)
Manukau East #D82A20	Ross Robertson (Lab)			13,850 #00529F	Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi (Nat)^†
Manurewa #D82A20	George Hawkins (Lab) #D82A20	Louisa Wall (Lab)	7,230 #00529F	Cam Calder (Nat)^†
Maungakiekie #00529F	Sam Lotu-Iiga (Nat)			2,787 #D82A20	Carol Beaumont (Lab)
Mount Albert #D82A20	David Shearer (Lab)			9,055 #00529F	Melissa Lee (Nat)^†
Mount Roskill #D82A20	Phil Goff (Lab)			6,383 #00529F	Jackie Blue (Nat)^†
Napier #00529F	Chris Tremain (Nat)			3,382 #D82A20	Stuart Nash (Lab)
Nelson #00529F	Nick Smith (Nat)			6,663 #D82A20	Maryan Street (Lab)^†
New Lynn #D82A20	David Cunliffe (Lab)			4,475 #00529F	Tim Groser (Lab)^†
New Plymouth #00529F	Jonathan Young (Nat)			4,130 #D82A20	Andrew Little (Lab)^†
North Shore #00529F	Wayne Mapp (Nat) #00529F	Maggie Barry (Nat)	13,739 #D82A20	Ben Clark (Lab)
Northcote #00529F	Jonathan Coleman (Nat)			8,535 #D82A20	Paula Gillon (Lab)
Northland #00529F	John Carter (Nat) #00529F	Mike Sabin (Nat)	10,655 #D82A20	Lynnette Stewart (Lab)
Ōhariu #501557	Peter Dunne (UFNZ)			1,646 #D82A20	Charles Chauvel (Lab)^†
Ōtaki #00529F	Nathan Guy (Nat)			5,099 #D82A20	Peter Foster (Lab)
Pakuranga #00529F	Maurice Williamson (Nat)			12,879 #D82A20	Sunny Kaushal (Lab)
Palmerston North #D82A20	Iain Lees-Galloway (Lab)			3,001 #00529F	Leonie Hapeta (Nat)
Papakura #00529F	Judith Collins (Nat)			9,339 #D82A20	Jerome Mika (Lab)
Port Hills #D82A20	Ruth Dyson (Lab)			2,925 #00529F	David Carter (Nat)^†
Rangitata #00529F	Jo Goodhew (Nat)			2,925 #D82A20	Julian Blanchard (Lab)
Rangitīkei #00529F	Simon Power (Nat) #00529F	Ian McKelvie (Nat)	8,741 #D82A20	Josie Pagani (Lab)
Rimutaka #D82A20	Chris Hipkins (Lab)			3,126 #00529F	Jonathan Fletcher (Lab)
Rodney #00529F	Lockwood Smith (Nat) #00529F	Mark Mitchell (Nat)	11,011 #F8F9FA	Colin Craig (Cons)
Rongotai #D82A20	Annette King (Lab)			8,022 #00529F	Chris Finlayson (Nat)^†
Rotorua #00529F	Todd McClay (Nat)			6,867 #D82A20	Stephanie Chadwick (Lab)
Selwyn #00529F	Amy Adams (Nat)			17,708 #D82A20	Jo McLean (Lab)
Tamaki #00529F	Allan Peachey (Nat) #00529F	Simon O'Connor (Nat)	16,257 #D82A20	Nick Bakulich (Lab)
Taranaki-King Country #00529F	Shane Ardern (Nat)			14,093 #D82A20	Rick Barker (Lab)
Taupō #00529F	Louise Upston (Nat)			13,049 #D82A20	Frances Campbell (Lab)
Tauranga #00529F	Simon Bridges (Nat)			15,812 #000000	Brendan Horan (NZF)^†
Te Atatu #DCDCDC	Chris Carter (Ind) #D82A20	Phil Twyford (Lab)	4,653 #00529F	Tau Henare (Nat)^†
Tukituki #00529F	Craig Foss (Nat)			9,032 #D82A20	Julia Haydon-Carr (Lab)
Waikato #00529F	Lindsay Tisch (Nat)			12,965 #D82A20	Kate Sutton (Lab)
Waimakariri #D82A20	Clayton Cosgrove (Lab) #00529F	Kate Wilkinson (Nat)	395 #D82A20	Clayton Cosgrove (Lab)^†
Wairarapa #00529F	John Hayes (Nat)			6,695 #D82A20	Michael Bott (Lab)
Waitakere #00529F	Paula Bennett (Nat)			349 #D82A20	Carmel Sepuloni (Lab)
Waitaki #00529F	Jacqui Dean (Nat)			12,963 #D82A20	Barry Monks (Lab)
Wellington Central #D82A20	Grant Robertson (Lab)			5,111 #00529F	Paul Foster-Bell (Nat)
West Coast-Tasman #00529F	Chris Auchinvole (Nat) #D82A20	Damien O'Connor (Lab)	2,287 #00529F	Chris Auchinvole (Nat)^†
Whanganui #00529F	Chester Borrows (Nat)			4,786 #D82A20	Hamish McDouall (Lab)
Whangarei #00529F	Phil Heatley (Nat)			11,674 #D82A20	Pat Newman (Lab)
Wigram #9E9E9E	Jim Anderton (Prog) #D82A20	Megan Woods (Lab)	1,533 #00529F	Sam Collins (Nat)
Māori electorates
Electorate	Incumbent		Winner		Majority	Runner-up
Hauraki-Waikato #D82A20	Nanaia Mahuta (Lab)			5,373 #770808	Angeline Greensill (Mana)
Ikaroa-Rāwhiti #D82A20	Parekura Horomia (Lab)			5,924 #B2001A	Na Raihania (Māori)
Tāmaki Makaurau #B2001A	Pita Sharples (Māori)			746 #D82A20	Shane Jones (Lab)^†
Te Tai Hauāuru #B2001A	Tariana Turia (Māori)			2,760 #D82A20	Soraya Peke-Mason (Lab)
Te Tai Tokerau #770808	Hone Harawira (Mana)			874 #D82A20	Kelvin Davis (Lab)
Te Tai Tonga #B2001A	Rahui Katene (Māori) #D82A20	Rino Tirikatene (Lab)	1,445 #B2001A	Rahui Katene (Māori)
Waiariki #B2001A	Te Ururoa Flavell (Māori)			1,820 #770808	Annette Sykes (Mana)

Notes

^† These people subsequently entered Parliament at the election as list MPs

List results

Due to the indeterminate nature of Christchurch Central, only the 50 confirmed list MPs are listed below, with the 51st list MP determined depending on the result:

If Brendon Burns wins Christchurch Central, then Nicky Wagner of National (list position 42) will be elected as a list MP.
If Nicky Wagner wins Christchurch Central, then Raymond Huo of Labour (list position 21) will be elected as a list MP.

	Elected candidates (list position)	Unsuccessful candidates
National	Lockwood Smith (03) Chris Finlayson (09) David Carter (10) Tim Groser (12) Steven Joyce (13) Hekia Parata (18) Michael Woodhouse (31) Melissa Lee (34) Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi (35) Jian Yang (36) Alfred Ngaro (37) Katrina Shanks (38) Paul Goldsmith (39) Tau Henare (40) Chris Auchinvole (43) Jackie Blue (46) Cam Calder (50) Aaron Gilmore (53)	Paul Quinn, Paul Foster-Bell, Claudette Hauiti, Joanne Hayes, Leonie Hapeta, Sam Collins, Jonathan Fletcher, Heather Tanner, Denise Krum, Carolyn O'Fallon, Viv Gurrey, Karen Rolleston, Brett Hudson, Linda Cooper, Karl Varley
Labour	David Parker (04) Maryan Street (07) Clayton Cosgrove (08) Sue Moroney (10) Charles Chauvel (11) Jacinda Ardern (13) Andrew Little (15) Shane Jones (16) Darien Fenton (18) Moana Mackey (19) Rajen Prasad (20)	Carol Beaumont, Kelvin Davis, Carmel Sepuloni, Rick Barker, Deborah Mahuta-Coyle, Stuart Nash, Brendon Burns, Michael Wood, Stephanie Chadwick, Kate Sutton, Jerome Mika, Josie Pagani, Lynette Stewart, Jordan Carter, Christine Rose, Glenda Alexander, Susan Zhu, Sehai Orgad, Mea'ole Keil, Richard Hills, Anahila Suisuiki, Hamish McDouall, Louis Te Kani, Tat Loo, Soraya Peke-Mason, Julian Blanchard, Peter Foster, Pat Newman, Julia Haydon-Carr, Michael Bott, Vivienne Goldsmith, Nick Bakulich, Chris Yoo, Barry Monks, Hugh Kininmonth, Jo Kim, Paula Gillon, Carol Devoy-Heena, Ben Clark, Chao-Fu Wu
Green	Metiria Turei (01) Russel Norman (02) Kevin Hague (03) Catherine Delahunty (04) Kennedy Graham (05) Eugenie Sage (06) Gareth Hughes (07) David Clendon (08) Jan Logie (09) Steffan Browning (10) Denise Roche (11) Holly Walker (12) Julie Anne Genter (13)	Mojo Mathers, James Shaw, David Hay, Richard Leckinger, Aaryn Barlow, Jeanette Elley, Sea Rotmann, Michael Gilchrist, Dora Langsbury, David Kennedy, Tane Woodley, Joseph Burston, Mikaere Curtis, Shane Gallagher, Saffron Toms, Stephen Tollestrup, Zachary Dorner, Paul Bailey, Rick Bazeley, Maree Brannigan, Caroline Conroy, Sue Coutts, Pauline Evans, Rachael Goldsmith, Cameron Harper, John Kelcher, Alex Kruize, Tom Land, Gerrie Ligtenberg, Jim MacDonald, Nick Marryatt, Zane McCarthy, Jack McDonald, Ian McLean, John Milnes, Darryl Monteith, Robert Moore, Teresa Moore, David Moorhouse, Todd Ross, Brett Stansfield, Geoff Steedman, Gary Stewart, Vernon Tava, Corrina Tucker, Pieter Watson, Charmaine Watts, Richard Wesley
NZ First	Winston Peters (01) Tracey Martin (02) Andrew Williams (03) Richard Prosser (04) Barbara Stewart (05) Brendan Horan (06) Denis O'Rourke (07) Asenati Taylor (08)	Helen Mulford, Hugh Barr, Fletcher Tabuteau, Pita Paraone, Brent Catchpole, Ben Craven, Jerry Ho, Bill Gudgeon, Kevin Gardener, Ray Dolman, David Scott, Randall Ratana, Mahesh Bindra, Edwin Perry, Dion Jelley, John Hall, Kevin Stone, Doug Nabbs, Brett Pierson, Olivia Ilalio, Gordon Stewart, Tamati Reid, Ian Brougham, Bill Woods, Allen Davies
Conservative Party of New Zealand	none	Colin Craig, Kathy Sheldrake, Larry Baldock, Fa'avae Gagamoe, Brian Dobbs, Roy Brown, Simonne Dyer, Simon Kan, Litia Simpson, Kevin Campbell, Paul Young, Leighton Baker, Feleti Key, Claire Holley, Frank John Naea, Frank Poching, Jesse Misa, Bob Daw, Lance Gedge, Robyn Jackson, Pat Gregory, Timothy de Vries, Melanie Taylor, Cynthia Liu, Craig Jensen, Oliver Vitali, Danny Mountain, Ivan Bailey, Brent Reid, Michael Cooke
Māori Party	none	Waihoroi Shortland, Kaapua Smith, Wheturangi Walsh-Tapiata, Tina Porou, Awanui Black, Davina Murray, Josie Peita, Paora Te Hurihanganui, Fallyn Flavell, Daryl Christie, Tom Phillips, Tim Morrison, Tamai Nicholson, Aroha Rickus
ACT	none	Don Brash, Catherine Isaac, Don Nicolson, David Seymour, Chris Simmons, Stephen Whittington, Kath McCabe, Robyn Stent, John Thompson, John Ormond, Lyn Murphy, Kevin Moratti, Robin Grieve, Pratima Nand, Dominic Costello, Toni Severin, Richard Evans, Ian Cummings, Gareth Veale, Toby Hutton, Daniel Stratton, Robert Burnside, Hayden Fitzgerald, Alex Speirs, Peter McCaffrey, Shane Atkinson, Allan Birchfield, Robin Boom, Stephen Boyle, Barry Brill, Ian Carline, Tom Corbett, Casey Costello, Alwyn Courtenay, Alan Daniel Davidson, Kimberly Hannah, Beth Houlbrooke, Paul Hufflett, Rosanne Jollands, Nick Kearney, Tim Kronfeld, Joel Latimer, Jonathan Macfarlane, Garry Mallett, Guy McCallum, Colin Nicholls, John Norvill, David Peterson, James Read, Geoff Russell, Andrew Sharrock, Barbara Steinijans, Michael Warren, Vince Ashworth
Mana	none	Annette Sykes, John Minto, Sue Bradford, Misty Harrison, James Papali’i, Tawhai McClutchie, Angeline Greensill, Jayson Gardiner, Richard Shortland Cooper, Peter Cleave, Val Irwin, Sharon Stevens, Keriana Reedy, Pat O'Dea, Rod Paul, Grant Rogers, Te Nguha Huirama-Patuwai, Barry Tumai, Ngawai Herewini
United Future New Zealand	none	Doug Stevens, Rob Eaddy, Sultan Eusoff, Alan Simmons, Bryan Mockridge, Vanessa Roberts, Pete George, Ram Prakash, Martin Gibson, Clyde Graf, Damian Light, Andrew McMillan, Diane Brown, Brian Carter, Johnny Miller, Ian Gaskin
Legalise Cannabis	none	Michael Appleby, Michael Britnell, Maki Herbert, Julian Crawford, Jeff Lye, Jasmin Hewlett, Emma-Jane Mihaere-Kingi, Steven Wilkinson, Richard Goode, Fred MacDonald, Leo Biggs, Jay Fitton, Romana Manning, Geoff McTague, Jamie Dombroski, Christine Mitchell, Dwayne Sherwood, Abe Gray, Sean Norris, Adrian McDermott, Philip Pophristoff, Neville Yates, Mark Bradford, Blair Anderson, Kevin O'Connell, Paula Lambert, Irinka Britnell, Paul McMullan
Democrats	none	Stephnie de Ruyter, John Pemberton, Warren Voight, Katherine Ransom, Carolyn McKenzie, Hessel van Wieren, Heather Smith, Jeremy Noble, Barry Pulford, John McCaskey, Huia Mitchell, Ken Goodhue, Les Port, Robert Mills, Harry Alchin-Smith, Errol Baird, Peter Adcock-White, John Ring, Kelly Balsom, David Espin, Ross Hayward, Gary Gribben, Ron England, David Tranter
Libertarianz	none	Richard McGrath, Sean Fitzpatrick, Peter Cresswell, Reagan Cutting, Peter Osborne, Michael Murphy, Shane Pleasance, Robert Palmer, Bernard Darnton, Helen Hughes, Colin Cross, Nik Haden, Luke Howison, Phil Howison, Andrew Couper, Mike Webber, Bruce Whitehead, Donald Rowberry, Ken Riddle, Peter Linton, Allan Munro, Ian Hayes, Shirley Riddle, Callum McPetrie, Elahrairah Zamora, Euan McPetrie, Mitch Lees
Alliance	none	Kay Murray, Andrew McKenzie, Kevin Campbell, Jim Flynn, Paul Piesse, Victor Billot, Mary O'Neill, Kelly Buchanan, Robert van Ruyssevelt, Jen Olsen, Tom Dowie, Thomas O'Neill, Eunice Billot, Norman MacRitchie

Changes in MPs

In total, 25 new MPs were elected to Parliament, and three former MPs returned.

New MPs: Scott Simpson, Maggie Barry, Mike Sabin, Ian McKelvie, Mark Mitchell, Simon O'Connor, Alfred Ngaro, Jian Yang, Paul Goldsmith, David Clark, Rino Tirikatene, Megan Woods, Andrew Little, Eugenie Sage, Jan Logie, Steffan Browning, Denise Roche, Holly Walker, Julie Anne Genter, Tracey Martin, Andrew Williams, Richard Prosser, Brendan Horan, Denis O'Rourke, Asenati Taylor

Returning MPs: John Banks, Winston Peters, Barbara Stewart,

Defeated MPs: Paul Quinn, Stephanie Chadwick, Stuart Nash, Carol Beaumont, Kelvin Davis, Carmel Sepuloni, Rick Barker, Rahui Katene,

Post-election events

Changes in party leadership

For the ACT party the mediocre election results on 26 November 2011 (1.1% of the party vote, with no list MPs, 1 electorate MP) resulted in Don Brash tendering his resignation as leader, stating that he took full responsibility for the party's poor performance.^[50]^[51]

Coalition agreements

References

^ ^a ^b "Key confirms election date". The New Zealand Herald. 2 February 2011. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
^ "MMP referendum to be held with 2011 election". The New Zealand Herald.
^ Cite error: The named reference electorate was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Otago Daily Times "Decision 2011":Election Special Issue, 28 November 2011, p. 2.
^ Armstrong, John; Young, Audrey (3 January 2011). "Challenges ahead but first, a break". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 January 2011.
^ "Electoral Act 1993, Sec. 125". Legislation.co.nz. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
^ 2008 General Election Timetable^{[dead link]}
^ ^a ^b "Electoral Act 1993, Sec. 139". Legislation.co.nz. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
^ "New Zealand's system of government - an overview". The New Zealand Electoral Commission.
^ ^a ^b "2011 general election and referendum timetable". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
^ "Sir Roger Douglas to quit parliament". Radio New Zealand. 19 February 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
^ "Hide won't contest general election". New Zealand Herald. 3 May 2011. Retrieved 03 August 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
^ "Hide refuses to give traditional farewell". New Zealand Herald. 01 August 2011. Retrieved 03 August 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
^ Vance, Andrea (25 June 2011). "Roy to quit - on her own terms". The Dominion Post. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
^ Edwards, Bryce (29 August 2011). "Hilary Calvert, ideal politician". National Business Review. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
^ "Nix NAIT Says Nicolson | ACT New Zealand". Act.org.nz. 6 September 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
^ "Kedgley sprints to the 2011 finish line". Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand. 17 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
^ "Kedgley confirms resignation". 17 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
^ "Locke to retire at election". Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand. 26 January 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2011.
^ Sachdeva, Sam (12 October 2010). "Anderton will retire from House in 2011". The Press. Fairfax New Zealand. Retrieved 15 February 2011.
^ "Labour's list 'not trusted' by MP". Manawatu Standard. 11 April 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
^ Trevett, Claire (9 December 2010). "Labour in turmoil over MP's threat to resign". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
^ Makenzie, Dene (5 June 2010). "Hodgson exits politics on 'own terms'". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
^ "Lynne Pillay confirms she will stand down in 2011". Scoop Media. 3 December 2009. Retrieved 3 December 2009.
^ "Mita Ririnui: Time for new challenges". New Zealand Labour Party. 15 February 2011. Retrieved 15 February 2011.
^ "McCully names new High Commissioner to the Cook Islands". New Zealand Government. 11 February 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011.
^ "Coromandel MP Sandra Goudie to retire". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
^ Liz Willis (15 December 2010). "National MP Wayne Mapp to retire".
^ Martin Kay (2 March 2011). "Justice Minister Simon Power to retire". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 2 March 2011.
^ John Hartevelt (5 October 2011). "Nationals Allan Peachey steps down". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
^ "Georgina te Heuheu to retire from politics". The New Zealand Herald. 10 May 2011. Retrieved 10 May 2011.
^ "Government to allow voters to enrol via Internet". New Zealand Government. 17 September 2010.
^ Gamble, Warren (18 November 2011). "Campervans collect early votes in Christchurch". The Press. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
^ ^a ^b "Candidates locked in for election". The New Zealand Herald. 2 November 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
^ "Registered political parties - overview & register". Electoral Commission. 7 October 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
^ "Party lists for the 2011 General Election". Electoral Commission. 2 November 2011. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
^ Danya Levy (18 October 2011). "New Citizens Party joins with Conservatives". Stuff. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
^ McMahon, Lyle (11 November 2011). "PM and Banks have their Epsom cup of tea". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 18 November 2011.
^ "Paul Goldsmith - Candidate profile". New Zealand National Party. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
^ Wilson, Peter (16 November 2011). "Key may face more teapot tape accusations". 3 News. New Zealand. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
^ "TV ONE election debates announced". Television New Zealand. 13 October 2011. Retrieved 26 October 2011.
^ Drinnan, John (26 August 2011). "Worm returns for leaders' debate". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 26 October 2011.
^ Cheng, Derek (30 October 2011). "Dunne wins debate by a hair". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 October 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Goff and Key clash in fiery opening debate". Television New Zealand. 31 October 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2011. Cite error: The named reference "TVNZ-multi-debate" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
^ Vance, Andrea (17 November 2011). "Winston Peters winner in minor party debate". Retrieved 17 November 2011.
^ "PM rules out any NZ First deal". The New Zealand Herald. 2 February 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
^ "Goff rules out deal with Hone Harawira". Stuff.co.nz. 14 March 2011. Retrieved 22 March 2011.
^ Young, Audrey (29 November 2011). "10 things you didn't know about the election results". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 29 November 2011.
^ "2011 Election Results -- Electorate Status". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
^ Don Brash resigns leadership of ACT Radio New Zealand, 27 November 2011. Retrieved: 27 November 2011
^ Don Brash interview Radio New Zealand, 26 November 2011. Retrieved: 27 November 2011

External links

Election broadcast

National opening on YouTube
Labour opening on YouTube
Greens opening on YouTube
ACT opening on YouTube
Alliance opening on YouTube
ALCP opening on YouTube
- Election 2011, Coverage from 3 News

[nzhdate-1] "Key confirms election date". The New Zealand Herald. 2 February 2011. Retrieved 5 May 2011.

[nzh_date-2] "MMP referendum to be held with 2011 election". The New Zealand Herald.

[electorate-3] Cite error: The named reference electorate was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[4] Otago Daily Times "Decision 2011":Election Special Issue, 28 November 2011, p. 2.

[5] Armstrong, John; Young, Audrey (3 January 2011). "Challenges ahead but first, a break". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 January 2011.

[6] "Electoral Act 1993, Sec. 125". Legislation.co.nz. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2011.

[www.elections.org.nz/voting/key-dates-7] 2008 General Election Timetable^{[dead link]}

[sec139-8] "Electoral Act 1993, Sec. 139". Legislation.co.nz. 17 August 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2011.

[last_date-9] "New Zealand's system of government - an overview". The New Zealand Electoral Commission.

[keydates-10] "2011 general election and referendum timetable". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 9 October 2011.

[RNZ_68884-11] "Sir Roger Douglas to quit parliament". Radio New Zealand. 19 February 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011.

[12] "Hide won't contest general election". New Zealand Herald. 3 May 2011. Retrieved 03 August 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)

[13] "Hide refuses to give traditional farewell". New Zealand Herald. 01 August 2011. Retrieved 03 August 2011. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)

[Stuff.co.nz_5191845-14] Vance, Andrea (25 June 2011). "Roy to quit - on her own terms". The Dominion Post. Retrieved 30 October 2011.

[NBR_99744-15] Edwards, Bryce (29 August 2011). "Hilary Calvert, ideal politician". National Business Review. Retrieved 30 October 2011.

[16] "Nix NAIT Says Nicolson | ACT New Zealand". Act.org.nz. 6 September 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2011.

[17] "Kedgley sprints to the 2011 finish line". Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand. 17 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.

[18] "Kedgley confirms resignation". 17 September 2010. Retrieved 17 September 2010.

[19] "Locke to retire at election". Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand. 26 January 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2011.

[20] Sachdeva, Sam (12 October 2010). "Anderton will retire from House in 2011". The Press. Fairfax New Zealand. Retrieved 15 February 2011.

[Stuff.co.nz_4871296-21] "Labour's list 'not trusted' by MP". Manawatu Standard. 11 April 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011.

[NZ_Herald_10693070-22] Trevett, Claire (9 December 2010). "Labour in turmoil over MP's threat to resign". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 30 October 2011.

[23] Makenzie, Dene (5 June 2010). "Hodgson exits politics on 'own terms'". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 6 June 2010.

[24] "Lynne Pillay confirms she will stand down in 2011". Scoop Media. 3 December 2009. Retrieved 3 December 2009.

[25] "Mita Ririnui: Time for new challenges". New Zealand Labour Party. 15 February 2011. Retrieved 15 February 2011.

[26] "McCully names new High Commissioner to the Cook Islands". New Zealand Government. 11 February 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2011.

[27] "Coromandel MP Sandra Goudie to retire". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 14 January 2011.

[retire-28] Liz Willis (15 December 2010). "National MP Wayne Mapp to retire".

[29] Martin Kay (2 March 2011). "Justice Minister Simon Power to retire". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 2 March 2011.

[30] John Hartevelt (5 October 2011). "Nationals Allan Peachey steps down". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 5 October 2011.

[31] "Georgina te Heuheu to retire from politics". The New Zealand Herald. 10 May 2011. Retrieved 10 May 2011.

[32] "Government to allow voters to enrol via Internet". New Zealand Government. 17 September 2010.

[Camper_vans-33] Gamble, Warren (18 November 2011). "Campervans collect early votes in Christchurch". The Press. Retrieved 26 November 2011.

[candidates-locked-34] "Candidates locked in for election". The New Zealand Herald. 2 November 2011. Retrieved 3 November 2011.

[35] "Registered political parties - overview & register". Electoral Commission. 7 October 2011. Retrieved 23 October 2011.

[36] "Party lists for the 2011 General Election". Electoral Commission. 2 November 2011. Retrieved 2 November 2011.

[37] Danya Levy (18 October 2011). "New Citizens Party joins with Conservatives". Stuff. Retrieved 18 October 2011.

[38] McMahon, Lyle (11 November 2011). "PM and Banks have their Epsom cup of tea". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 18 November 2011.

[39] "Paul Goldsmith - Candidate profile". New Zealand National Party. Retrieved 20 November 2011.

[3_News-40] Wilson, Peter (16 November 2011). "Key may face more teapot tape accusations". 3 News. New Zealand. Retrieved 16 November 2011.

[41] "TV ONE election debates announced". Television New Zealand. 13 October 2011. Retrieved 26 October 2011.

[42] Drinnan, John (26 August 2011). "Worm returns for leaders' debate". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 26 October 2011.

[43] Cheng, Derek (30 October 2011). "Dunne wins debate by a hair". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 31 October 2011.

[TVNZ-multi-debate-44] "Goff and Key clash in fiery opening debate". Television New Zealand. 31 October 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2011. Cite error: The named reference "TVNZ-multi-debate" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).

[45] Vance, Andrea (17 November 2011). "Winston Peters winner in minor party debate". Retrieved 17 November 2011.

[46] "PM rules out any NZ First deal". The New Zealand Herald. 2 February 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2011.

[47] "Goff rules out deal with Hone Harawira". Stuff.co.nz. 14 March 2011. Retrieved 22 March 2011.

[48] Young, Audrey (29 November 2011). "10 things you didn't know about the election results". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 29 November 2011.

[49] "2011 Election Results -- Electorate Status". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 27 November 2011.

[50] Don Brash resigns leadership of ACT Radio New Zealand, 27 November 2011. Retrieved: 27 November 2011

[51] Don Brash interview Radio New Zealand, 26 November 2011. Retrieved: 27 November 2011

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@@ Line 148: / Line 148: @@
 National's confidence and supply partners in the 49th Parliament meanwhile suffered losses. [[ACT New Zealand]] won less than a third of the party vote it received in 2008, reducing from five seats to just one. The [[Māori Party]] was reduced from five seats to three, as the party vote split between the Māori Party and former Māori Party MP [[Hone Harawira]]'s [[Mana Party (New Zealand)|Mana Party]]. [[United Future New Zealand|United Future]] lost party votes, but retained their one seat in Parliament.
+==Background==
-emiy and anne love mayson
+===Election date===
-ifhebgurhvhurgrhfjhrj h utu4heu hrbfjjfirhfuijamtie
+The election date was set as Saturday 26 November 2011, as predicted by the media.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10697628 |title= Challenges ahead but first, a break |publisher= The New Zealand Herald |last1= Armstrong |first1= John |last2= Young |first2= Audrey |date= 3 January 2011 |accessdate= 13 January 2011}}</ref> Breaking with tradition, Prime Minister John Key announced the election date in February. Traditionally, the election date is a closely guarded secret, announced as late as possible. The date follows the tradition of holding the general election on the last Saturday of November unless the schedule is interrupted by a snap election or to circumvent holding a by-election.
+The [[Governor General of New Zealand|Governor General]] must issue [[writ of election|writs]] for an election within seven days of the expiration or dissolution of the [[49th New Zealand Parliament|current Parliament]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.co.nz/act/public/1993/0087/latest/DLM309425.html#DLM309425 |title=Electoral Act 1993, Sec. 125 |publisher=Legislation.co.nz |date=2011-08-17 |accessdate=2011-11-27}}</ref> Under section 17 of the [[Constitution Act 1986]], Parliament expires three years "from the day fixed for the return of the writs issued for the last preceding general election of members of the House of Representatives, and no longer." The writs for the previous election were returnable on 27 November 2008.<ref name="www.elections.org.nz/voting/key-dates">[http://www.elections.org.nz/voting/key-dates.html 2008 General Election Timetable]{{dead link|date=November 2011}}</ref> As a result, the [[49th New Zealand Parliament|49th Parliament]] will expire, if not dissolved earlier, on 27 November 2011. As that day is a Sunday, the last available working day is 25 November 2011. Consequently, the last day for issuance of writs of election is 2 December 2011. The writs must be returned within 50 days of their issuance with the last possible working day being 20 January 2012.<ref name="sec139">{{cite web|url=http://www.legislation.co.nz/act/public/1993/0087/latest/DLM309482.html#DLM309482 |title=Electoral Act 1993, Sec. 139 |publisher=Legislation.co.nz |date=2011-08-17 |accessdate=2011-11-27}}</ref> Because polling day must be a Saturday,<ref name="sec139"/> the last possible polling date for the election was 7 January 2012, allowing time for the counting of special votes.<ref name="last_date">{{cite web|url=http://www.elections.org.nz/elections/system-of-government.html|title=New Zealand's system of government - an overview|publisher=[[Electoral Commission (New Zealand)|The New Zealand Electoral Commission]]}}</ref> The Christmas/New Year holiday period made the last realistic date for the election Saturday 10 December 2011. The [[Rugby World Cup 2011]] was hosted by New Zealand between 9 September and 23 October 2011, and ruled out all the possible election dates in this period. This left two possible windows for the general election: on or before 2 September and 29 October to 10 December.
+{| class="wikitable"
+|-
+| 2 February 2011 || Prime Minister John Key announces election to be held on 26 November
+|-
+| 6 October 2011 || Last sitting day for the 49th Parliament
+|-
+| 20 October 2011 || Governor General Jerry Mateparae dissolves the 49th Parliament
+|-
+| 26 October 2011 || '''Writ Day''' - Governor General issues formal direction to the Electoral Commission to hold the election. <br>Electoral roll closes for printing (all people enrolling after this date must cast special declaration votes).
+|-
+| 2 November 2011 || Details of candidates for election and polling places released.
+|-
+| 9 November 2011 || Advance and overseas voting begins.
+|-
+| 25 November 2011 || Advance voting ends. Overseas voting ends 4:00pm local time.
+|-
+| 26 November 2011 || '''Election Day''' - polling places open 9:00am to 7:00pm. Preliminary results released progressively after 7:00pm.
+|-
+| 10 December 2011 || '''Official results released'''
+|-
+| 15 December 2011 || Writ for election returned; official declaration of elected members
+|}
+Source: <ref name="keydates">{{cite web |url= http://www.elections.org.nz/elections/2011-general-election-and-referendum/election-date-announcement-and-key-dates.html |title= 2011 general election and referendum timetable |publisher= Electoral Commission |accessdate= 9 October 2011}}</ref>
+===49th Parliament, 2008–2011===
+Following the [[New Zealand general election, 2008|2008 general election]],  [[New Zealand National Party|National Party]] leader and Prime Minister [[John Key]] announced a confidence and supply agreement with [[ACT New Zealand|ACT]], the [[Māori Party]] and [[United Future New Zealand|United Future]] to form the [[Fifth National Government of New Zealand|Fifth National Government]]. These arrangements gave the National-led government a majority of 16 seats, with 69 on confidence-and-supply in the 122-seat Parliament.
+[[New Zealand Labour Party|Labour]], [[Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand|Greens]] and the [[New Zealand Progressive Party|Progressives]] are all in opposition, although only the Labour and Progressive parties formally constitute the [[Official Opposition (New Zealand)|formal Opposition]]; the Greens have a minor agreement with the government but are not committed to ''[[confidence and supply]]'' support.
+At the 2008 election, the National Party had 58 seats, the Labour Party 43 seats, Green Party 9 seats, ACT and Māori Party five each, and Progressive and United Future one each. During the Parliament session, two members defected from their parties – [[Chris Carter (politician)|Chris Carter]] was expelled from Labour in August 2010, and [[Hone Harawira]] left the Māori Party in February 2011. Carter continued as an [[independent (politician)|independent]], while Harawira resigned from parliament to recontest his [[Te Tai Tokerau]] electorate in [[Te Tai Tokerau by-election, 2011|a by-election]] under his newly formed [[Mana Party (New Zealand)|Mana Party]]. Two MPs resigned from Parliament before the end of the session, [[John Carter (New Zealand)|John Carter]] of National and Chris Carter, but as they resigned within 6 months of an election, their seats remained vacant.
+At the dissolution of the 49th parliament on 20 October 2011, National held 57 seats, Labour 42 seats, Green 9 seats, ACT 5 seats, Māori 4 seats, and Progressive, United Future and Mana one each.
+===Marginal seats in 2008===
+At the [[New Zealand general election, 2008|2008 election]], the following seats were won by a majority of less than 1000 votes:
+{|class="wikitable sortable"
+|-
+!Electorate
+!Member of Parliament
+!colspan=2|Incumbent party
+!Majority
+!Second place
+!colspan=2|Second party
+|-
+|[[New Plymouth (New Zealand electorate)|New Plymouth]]
+|{{sortname|Jonathan|Young|Jonathan Young (New Zealand)}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand National Party}}
+|{{nts|105}}
+|{{sortname|Harry|Duynhoven}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand Labour Party}}
+|-
+|[[Waimakariri (New Zealand electorate)|Waimakariri]]
+|{{sortname|Clayton|Cosgrove}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand Labour Party}}
+|{{nts|390}}
+|{{sortname|Kate|Wilkinson|Kate Wilkinson (politician)}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand National Party}}
+|-
+|[[Waitakere (New Zealand electorate)|Waitakere]]
+|{{sortname|Paula|Bennett}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand National Party}}
+|{{nts|632}}
+|{{sortname|Lynne|Pillay}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand Labour Party}}
+|-
+|[[Rimutaka (New Zealand electorate)|Rimutaka]]
+|{{sortname|Chris|Hipkins}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand Labour Party}}
+|{{nts|753}}
+|{{sortname|Richard|Whiteside}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand National Party}}
+|-
+|[[Hauraki-Waikato]]
+|{{sortname|Nanaia|Mahuta}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand Labour Party}}
+|{{nts|888}}
+|{{sortname|Angeline|Greensill}}
+{{Party name with colour|Māori Party}}
+|-
+|[[Christchurch Central]]
+|{{sortname|Brendon|Burns|Brendon Burns (politician)}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand Labour Party}}
+|{{nts|935}}
+|{{sortname|Nicky|Wagner}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand National Party}}
+|-
+|[[West Coast-Tasman]]
+|{{sortname|Chris|Auchinvole}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand National Party}}
+|971
+|{{sortname|Damien|O'Connor}}
+{{Party name with colour|New Zealand Labour Party}}
+|}
+===MPs retiring in 2011===
+Nineteen MPs, including all five ACT MPs and the sole Progressive MP, intended to retire at the end of the 49th Parliament. One of the ACT MPs, John Boscawen, contested [[Tāmaki (New Zealand electorate)|Tāmaki]], but did not expect to win and was not on the party list. National MP Allan Peachey died three weeks before the election.
+{| class="wikitable"
+|-
+! colspan=2| Party !! Name !! Electorate !!
+|-
+| rowspan=5 style="background-color: {{ACT New Zealand/meta/color}}" |
+| rowspan=5|[[ACT New Zealand|ACT]]
+| [[Roger Douglas]] || (List) ||<ref name="RNZ_68884">{{cite news |url=http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/68884/sir-roger-douglas-to-quit-parliament |title=Sir Roger Douglas to quit parliament |date=19 February 2011 |work=[[Radio New Zealand]] |accessdate=30 October 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Rodney Hide]] || [[Epsom (New Zealand electorate)|Epsom]] ||<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10723116|publisher=[[New Zealand Herald]]|title=Hide won't contest general election|date=3 May 2011 |accessdate=03 August 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.nzherald.co.nz/act-party/news/article.cfm?o_id=359&objectid=10742163|publisher=[[New Zealand Herald]]|title=Hide refuses to give traditional farewell|date=01 August 2011 |accessdate=03 August 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+|[[Heather Roy]]||(List)||<ref name="Stuff.co.nz_5191845">{{cite news |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/5191845/Roy-to-quit-on-her-own-terms |title=Roy to quit - on her own terms |author=Vance, Andrea |date=25 June 2011 |work=[[The Dominion Post (Wellington)|The Dominion Post]] |accessdate=30 October 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+|[[Hilary Calvert]]||(List)||<ref name="NBR_99744">{{cite news |url=http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/nz-politics-daily-hilary-calvert-suddenly-looks-ideal-politician-ck-99744 |title=Hilary Calvert, ideal politician |author=Edwards, Bryce |date=29 August 2011 |work=[[National Business Review]] |accessdate=30 October 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+|[[John Boscawen]]||(List)||<ref>{{cite web|url=http://act.org.nz/news/boscawen-announces-he-will-not-seek-re-election-on-act-party-list |title=Nix NAIT Says Nicolson &#124; ACT New Zealand |publisher=Act.org.nz |date=2011-09-06 |accessdate=2011-11-27}}</ref>
+|-
+| rowspan=2 style="background-color: {{Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand/meta/color}}" |
+| rowspan=2| [[Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand|Green]]
+| [[Sue Kedgley]] || (List) ||<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.greens.org.nz/press-releases/kedgley-sprints-2011-finish-line|title=Kedgley sprints to the 2011 finish line|date=17 September 2010|publisher=Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand|accessdate=17 September 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/4138433/Kedgley-confirms-resignation |title=Kedgley confirms resignation |date=17 September 2010 |accessdate=17 September 2010}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Keith Locke]] || (List) ||<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1101/S00088/locke-to-retire-at-election.htm |title=Locke to retire at election |publisher=Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand |date=26 January 2011 |accessdate=26 January 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| style="background-color: {{New Zealand Progressive Party/meta/color}}" |
+| [[Jim Anderton's Progressive Party|Progressive]]
+| [[Jim Anderton]] || [[Wigram (New Zealand electorate)|Wigram]] ||<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/4220907/Anderton-will-retire-from-House-in-2011 |title=Anderton will retire from House in 2011 |work=[[The Press]] |publisher=[[Fairfax New Zealand]]|first=Sam |last=Sachdeva |date=12 October 2010 |accessdate=15 February 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| rowspan=5 style="background-color: {{New Zealand Labour Party/meta/color}}" |
+| rowspan=5| [[New Zealand Labour Party|Labour]]
+| [[Ashraf Choudhary]] || (List) || <ref name="Stuff.co.nz_4871296">{{cite news |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/news/4871296/Labours-list-not-trusted-by-MP |title=Labour's list 'not trusted' by MP |date=11 April 2011 |work=[[Manawatu Standard]] |accessdate=30 October 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[George Hawkins (politician)|George Hawkins]] || [[Manurewa (New Zealand electorate)|Manurewa]] ||<ref name="NZ_Herald_10693070">{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10693070 |title=Labour in turmoil over MP's threat to resign |author=Trevett, Claire |date=9 December 2010 |work=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |accessdate=30 October 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Pete Hodgson]] || [[Dunedin North (New Zealand electorate)|Dunedin North]] ||<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/109398/hodgson-exits-politics-039own-terms039|title=Hodgson exits politics on 'own terms'|last=Makenzie|first=Dene|date=5 June 2010|work=Otago Daily Times|accessdate=6 June 2010}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Lynne Pillay]] || (List) ||<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0912/S00039.htm |title=Lynne Pillay confirms she will stand down in 2011 |publisher=Scoop Media |date=3 December 2009 |accessdate=3 December 2009}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Mita Ririnui]] || (List) ||<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1102/S00201/mita-ririnui-time-for-new-challenges.htm |title=Mita Ririnui: Time for new challenges |publisher=New Zealand Labour Party |date=15 February 2011 |accessdate=15 February 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| rowspan=6 style="background-color: {{New Zealand National Party/meta/color}}" |
+| rowspan=6| [[New Zealand National Party|National]]
+| [[John Carter (New Zealand)|John Carter]] || [[Northland (New Zealand electorate)|Northland]] ||<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1102/S00172/mccully-names-new-high-commissioner-to-the-cook-islands.htm |title=McCully names new High Commissioner to the Cook Islands |publisher=New Zealand Government |date=11 February 2011 |accessdate=11 February 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Sandra Goudie]] || [[Coromandel (New Zealand electorate)|Coromandel]] ||<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10699661|title=Coromandel MP Sandra Goudie to retire|publisher=New Zealand Herald|accessdate=14 January 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Wayne Mapp]] || [[North Shore (New Zealand electorate)|North Shore]] ||<ref name="retire">{{cite web|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/4460226/National-MP-Wayne-Mapp-to-retire|date=15 December 2010|title=National MP Wayne Mapp to retire |author=Liz Willis}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Simon Power]] || [[Rangitīkei (New Zealand electorate)|Rangitīkei]] ||<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/4721936/Justice-Minister-Simon-Power-to-retire|title=Justice Minister Simon Power to retire|author=Martin Kay|publisher=[[Stuff.co.nz]]|date=2 March 2011|accessdate=2 March 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Allan Peachey]] || [[Tāmaki (New Zealand electorate)|Tāmaki]] ||<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/5737007/Nationals-Allan-Peachey-steps-down|title=Nationals Allan Peachey steps down|author=John Hartevelt|publisher=[[Stuff.co.nz]]|date=5 October 2011|accessdate=5 October 2011}}</ref>
+|-
+| [[Georgina te Heuheu]] || (List) ||<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10724694&ref=rss |title=Georgina te Heuheu to retire from politics |publisher=The New Zealand Herald |date= 10 May 2011 |accessdate= 10 May 2011}}</ref>
+|}
+===Electorate boundaries===
+[[File:Christchurch polling place 01.jpg|thumb|Advance voting in campervans in Christchurch. Campervans were used as many of the polling stations used at previous elections are unavailable due to the [[2010 Canterbury earthquake|2010]] and [[2011 Christchurch earthquake|2011]] earthquakes.]]
+[[New Zealand electorates|Electorates]] in the election were the same as at the 2008 election.
+Electorates and their boundaries in New Zealand are reviewed every five years after the [[New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings|Census of Population and Dwellings]]. The last review took place in 2007, following the 2006 census. The next review is not due until 2014, following the 2013 census (the 2011 census was cancelled due to the 22 February [[2011 Christchurch earthquake]]).
+===Election procedures===
+On 17 September 2010, Justice Minister [[Simon Power]] announced the government was introducing legislation making this the first election where voters would be able to re-enrol completely on-line. Enrolments on-line beforehand still required the election form to be printed, signed, and sent by post.<ref>{{cite web|title=Government to allow voters to enrol via Internet|url= http://beehive.govt.nz/release/government+allow+voters+enrol+internet |publisher=New Zealand Government|date=17 September 2010|accessdate=}}</ref>
+Voters in the [[Christchurch]] region were encouraged to cast their votes before election day if they had doubt about being able to get to a polling booth on election day or to avoid long queues, as many traditional polling booths are unavailable due to the earthquakes. Nineteen advance voting stations were made available, with three of them campervans, which are usually only used in rural areas of New Zealand. The [[Christchurch Central]] electorate, for example, has 33 polling stations in 2011 compared to 45 in 2008.<ref name="Camper vans">{{cite news|last=Gamble|first=Warren|title=Campervans collect early votes in Christchurch|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/campaign-trail/5989769/Campervans-collect-early-votes-in-Christchurch|accessdate=26 November 2011|newspaper=[[The Press]]|date=18 November 2011}}</ref>
 ==Contesting parties and candidates==