Honeymoon over? Labour drops below National in latest poll

NZ Herald

16 Apr, 2018 05:57 AM2 mins to read

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Labour has slipped in the polls. Photo / File

Labour has sunk below National in the latest 1News/Colmar Brunton poll, 43 per cent to 44 per cent.

It is the first poll since Simon Bridges took over the National Party leadership in February.

But Labour's partners in Government, New Zealand First and the Green, are both on or above five per cent and the three parties combined would translate to 66 seats in the House, comfortably ahead of National and Act with 55 seats.

Labour has sunk by five points, but its last poll at 48 per cent seemed was unusually high.

Support for Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern as preferred Prime Minister is down by four points to 37 per cent but she is well ahead of the 10 per cent for Bridges, who replaced former Prime Minister Bill English in February.

Deputy Prime Minister and New Zealand First leader Winston Peters is on 5 per cent, up 1 point.

The Maori Party, which no longer has any MPs in Parliament is still registering on 1 per cent.

The 1 News poll, translated to seats in the House, Labour would have 52, National 54, Greens 8, New Zealand First 6, and Act 1 (assuming leaders keep any electorate seat).

The dip in popularity comes as no surprise to Labour having suffered a series of mis-steps and controversies including the Young Labour summer camp indecent assault scandal, the Clare Curran – Carol Hirschfeld saga, and a proposed hike in fuel excise.

Newshub's Reid Research poll in January put National's support at 44.5 per cent, Labour at 42.3, New Zealand First at 3.8 per cent and the Greens on 6 per cent.

The actual election result last election saw National win 44 per cent of the vote, but unable to form a Government which was formed by Labour on 37 per cent, New Zealand First on 7 per cent (which held the balance of power) and the Greens on 6 per cent.

· The 1News/Colmar Brunton poll of 1007 eligible voters was conducted for 1 News between April 7 and 11 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 per cent.