Peters: 'Forgotten people' have spoken

NZ First Leader Winston Peters greets jubilant supporters at the Duke of Marlborough in Russell after winning the Northland byelection. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Prime Minister John Key has vowed to do all he can over the next two and a half years to win Northland back after voters dealt his party a humiliating defeat.

NZ First leader Winston Peters won Saturday's byelection with a convincing 4000-vote majority, the first time National has lost its grip on Northland since 1966. Former National MP Mike Sabin, whose resignation triggered the byelection, won it with a 9300-vote majority just six months ago.

Mr Peters received a hero's welcome when he arrived at NZ First's election night headquarters at the Duke of Marlborough in Russell just before 9pm on Saturday. He began his victory speech with a message to the other candidates, particularly National's Mark Osborne, urging them not to despair.

"You have our sympathy and our understanding, and no one should hold you [Mr Osborne] accountable for past neglect and political abandonment," Mr Peters said.

Northland's Whananaki-born prodigal son put his win down to "taking the road less travelled" in his Force for the North bus tour.

"We went to tens of thousands of forgotten people. They have responded and that has made all the difference," he said. He had campaigned on issues that mattered to Northlanders, such as jobs, poverty, education, roads and infrastructure, rather than his main opponent's "stage-managed platitudes".

Mr Peters said it had been a difficult campaign and his party had been ridiculed from the outset, but voters had heard his call to send the Government a message. Northland would not be forgotten again, he said. Among his priorities would be pushing for a rail link to Marsden Pt. Developing the port would give Northland producers a closer outlet for their goods while also solving Auckland's port problems.

Click on the image to see part of Winston Peters' victory speech:

NZ First's win is a blow to Mr Key and campaign manager Steven Joyce. Mr Key cut short an official visit to Japan in a last-minute bid to rescue a campaign which never really fired, despite huge effort and resources. A poll showed National's key announcement, the replacement of 10 one-way bridges, was seen as an election bribe. It also appeared to be poorly considered when it emerged that one of the bridges was not a bridge at all, and that the plan omitted several of the North's most flood-prone bridges. Funding for the work was also an issue.

Mr Key acknowledged the party had work to do in Northland - a contrast to his stance when he gave Mr Peters "zero chance" of winning.

"The region has been struggling for decades and although we have been making progress, Northlanders have clearly told us they are not satisfied with the rate of progress and we understand that," Mr Key said from Melbourne, where he had gone to watch the Cricket World Cup final rather than spend Saturday with his Northland candidate. "I'd like to assure Northlanders we're going to continue to work hard to deliver more progress. We plan to work hard to win the seat back in the general election in two and a half years."

Mr Osborne spent the night with supporters and Ministers Steven Joyce, Paula Bennett and Nikki Kaye at the Bay of Islands Golf Club in Kerikeri. He put the party's historic loss down to "a perfect storm" of factors. They included the challenges of fighting a byelection, Labour voters' support for Mr Peters, and Mr Peters' name recognition. He did not believe Northland had been neglected, but acknowledged the region faced long-standing challenges.

The campaign had taken its toll - he had missed his wedding anniversary and a daughter's birthday - but he had no regrets. He had to talk to his family before making any decisions but was keen to try again in 2017.

"I'm probably more inspired now, after the loss, to make a difference to Northland."

It was likely he would return to his job as asset manager with the Far North District Council.

The 10 bridges programme would go ahead despite the byelection result. Mr Osborne said the bridges at Matakohe, Whangaroa and Taipa were the most critical and should be expedited.