By Lucy CraymerWELLINGTON (Reuters) - New Zealand’s Prime Minister-elect Christopher Luxon and his centre-right National Party are expected to start negotiations with the ACT Party Sunday, after the two parties won a slim majority in the general election.
The conservative National Party won 50 seats and the ACT Party won 11, securing a majority of just one seat in the 121 seat parliament, according to provisional results from the Electoral Commission.
Chris Bishop, National Party Campaign Chairperson, said on TVNZ political show Q+A that Luxon had already spoken with ACT leader David Seymour and senior National members would meet this afternoon to discuss coalition negotiations.
Bishop said he expected National would lose at least one seat once these votes were counted.
Under New Zealand’s mixed member proportional system it is very uncommon for a single party to form government, although Jacinda Ardern’s Labour government did in 2020.
Persons:
Lucy Craymer WELLINGTON, Christopher Luxon, Luxon, Chris Bishop, David Seymour, Bishop, Lucy Craymer, Mark Potter
Organizations:
Reuters, Zealand’s, National, ACT Party Sunday, National Party, ACT Party, Electoral, TVNZ, ACT, New Zealand, Labour
Locations:
New Zealand