Editorial: Voters reject change

Photo / File

In the end, the allegations of dirty politics and mass spying proved little more than a distraction.

Prime Minister John Key's National Party won a third term in emphatic fashion on Saturday night with an unprecedented govern-alone victory.

It's the first time since MMP was introduced in 1996 that any party has held a majority without needing coalition partners. Much of the credit for the emphatic win belongs with Mr Key, who has shown an uncanny ability to connect with New Zealanders.

At times, Mr Key looked strained as he contended with the fallout from Dirty Politics and claims about mass surveillance by journalist Glenn Greenwald and Edward Snowden.

However, his counterattacks obviously worked. He also managed to ensure that his message that the country's "rock-star economy" needed to continue on its path and that any political change would place that in jeopardy.

If anything, the side issues raised during the campaign hurt the left, with both the Greens and Labour conceding their campaigns struggled to get oxygen.

Labour, which endured its worst defeat since 1922, now has to find out why things went so wrong. There is already speculation that David Cunliffe's leadership is on the line, although he has been quick to signal his intention to stay on.

The nation's lack of appetite for change was reflected locally.

First-time National Party candidate Todd Muller won the Bay of Plenty seat easily and incumbent Tauranga MP Simon Bridges also won by a landslide.

The region also has another new MP after New Zealand First candidate Clayton Mitchell made it on the party list

The question of whether or not the controversial political career of Brendan Horan should continue was also answered emphatically on election night.

Mr Horan, who made it to Parliament as a list MP, was criticised for remaining as an independent MP after being kicked out of the party.

His party, the New Zealand Independent Coalition, scarcely created a ripple in New Zealand's political order, with the former TV weatherman polling a distant fifth in the Bay of Plenty electorate's candidate contest.

So, while voters were not in the mood for change, they did, it appears, want to address an anomaly arising from the MMP system.