Increase in split votes, election figures show

6.00pm - By AUDREY YOUNG

Just over 39 per cent of voters split their vote in the July election, the third election under the two-vote MMP system.

That is an increase on the last election three years ago in which 35.03 per cent of voters split their vote, according to figures released yesterday from the Chief Electoral Office.

In the first MMP election, 37 per cent of voters split their vote.

Of the parties represented in the present Parliament, supporters of New Zealand First were most likely to vote for a candidate from another party in their electorate vote.

But the party fielded candidates in only 22 of the 69 electorates so most New Zealand First voters in a majority of electorates had no choice but to vote for a non-New Zealand First candidate.

Next highest was Act. Of all those who gave Act their party vote, 76.14 per cent voted for a candidate from another party in their electorate vote.

Only three parties contested all 69 electorates last election: Labour, National and Christian Heritage.

The party supporters who split their votes are as follows for parties in the current Parliament: New Zealand First _ 78.28 per cent Act _ 76.14 per cent Progressive Coalition _ 72.43 per cent United Future _ 68.60 per cent Green _ 60 .2 per cent Labour _ 19.99 per cent National _ 18.21 per cent.

Among the unsuccessful parties, 70.5 per cent of people who cast their party vote for the Alliance, split their vote; 94.29 per cent of Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party voters; 47.5 per cent of Christian Heritage Party voters; and 61.57 per cent of Mana Maori Movement. Both Outdoor Recreation New Zealand and New Millennium Party were list-only parties so had a 100 per cent rate of vote-splitting.

The figures give an electorate breakdown. The Ohariu Belmont show why United Future leader Peter Dunne won so convincingly: 57.33 per cent of people who gave National their party vote, supported him as the electorate MP, as did 46.87 per cent of Labour voters, 62.81 of Act voters and 60.34 of New Zealand First voters.

A lot of tactical voting also occurred in Waitakere in support of Alliance leader Laila Harre but not enough to win her the seat from Labour's Lynne Pillay.

Harre won backing from more than 1000 Act and National voters. She won backing from 17.42 per cent of Act party voters, 50.18 per cent of Green Party voters, 22.35 per cent of Jim Anderton's Progressive Coalition voters; 26.87 per cent of Labour voters, 21.75 per cent of New Zealand First voters and 17.8 per cent of National voters.

More surprising is the fact that Laila Harre attracted only 84.86 per cent of those who had given the Alliance their party vote. In Epsom, sitting National MP Richard Worth won the electorate vote of 50.63 per cent of people who had given Act their party vote and Act candidate Rodney Hide won 19.4 per cent of people who had given National their party vote.

There are two votes under MMP: one for the electorate MP in which the voter lives and one for the political party.

The percentage of party votes nationwide determines the percentage of MPs each party has in Parliament, so long as they muster at least five per cent of the vote.