While we wait for those dates, National and incoming Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will be negotiating with Act and New Zealand First over a potential coalition deal to form the next government.
Speaking to On the Campaign, NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan said they will be working to have things done by November 3, rather than holding out for the byelection.
Listen to the full episode of On The Campaign for more on what will happen next for National, the coalition agreements, and Labour.
“Everyone knows the Port Waikato byelection is going to go National’s way. I don’t think there’s any appetite to make the New Zealand public wait that long. I think that will backfire on all three parties if they hang out for that,” Coughlan says.
“So really the big date is November 3, and then after that I’d expect the new Government to head to Government House and to read their oaths and be sworn in.”
Coughlan said the big question for the next few weeks for National is if they want NZ First to be in coalition with them to serve as a buffer, in case of MPs going rogue during the next three years, or if they need NZ First to keep them and Act above the 61-seat majority threshold.
What is clear though is that Labour will need time to take stock of their losses and work out where to next. Coughlan said that their defeat on Saturday is historic for a governing party.
“In the MMP era, no major party has ever fallen out of government with a result quite like that. The worst result for a major party before last weekend’s election was Jenny Shipley, who fell out of government with 30.5 percent of the vote.
“No one has ever managed to fall out of government in the 20s.”
Waikato electorates: How many votes did candidates and parties get in your electorate?
Preliminary count
Coromandel
Votes counted: 38,186
Candidate votes
SIMPSON, Scott 20950
RILEY, Beryl 6354
GREALEY, Pamela 3846
ANSELL, Caleb 2509
VERBURG, Joanna 2140
COBB, Ray 1800
TEPOU, Sarai 195
Party votes
National Party 16638
Labour Party 7568
ACT New Zealand 4532
New Zealand First Party 4016
Green Party 2797
New Zealand Loyal 1168
The Opportunities Party (TOP) 363
Te Pāti Māori 250
NewZeal 212
Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 127
Freedoms NZ 90
DemocracyNZ 77
Animal Justice Party 43
New Conservatives 29
Leighton Baker Party 26
Women’s Rights Party 22
New Nation Party 18
Hamilton East
Votes counted: 29,631
Candidate votes
HAMILTON, Ryan 14318
DANSEY, Georgie 10355
PARMAR, Himanshu 1300
KNAAP, Russelle 965
CORKIN, Alex 878
PARKER, Awatea 788
BAN, Tanya 380
CARRINGTON, Lily 233
GIELEN, Jacobus 24
COUPER, Nathan Lee 16
Party votes
National Party 12766
Labour Party 7301
Green Party 3467
ACT New Zealand 2525
New Zealand First Party 1555
The Opportunities Party (TOP) 785
Te Pāti Māori 353
New Zealand Loyal 239
NewZeal 148
New Conservatives 75
Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 63
Animal Justice Party 54
Freedoms NZ 44
Women’s Rights Party 28
DemocracyNZ 23
Leighton Baker Party 18
New Nation Party 13
Hamilton West
Votes counted: 30,829
Candidate votes
POTAKA, Tama William 14348
WILLIAMSON, Myra 8951
DOYLE, Benjamin 2350
STEVENSON, Susan 1792
STONE, Kevin 1448
POCOCK, Naomi 798
WILSON, Melanie 264
DU PLOOY, Rudi 254
Party votes
National Party 12631
Labour Party 8230
Green Party 2891
ACT New Zealand 2828
New Zealand First Party 2025
The Opportunities Party (TOP) 754
Te Pāti Māori 458
New Zealand Loyal 241
NewZeal 129
Freedoms NZ 119
Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 116
Animal Justice Party 85
New Conservatives 76
DemocracyNZ 42
Women’s Rights Party 24
New Nation Party 16
Leighton Baker Party 13
Taranaki-King Country
Votes counted: 34,077
Candidate votes
KURIGER, Barbara 21132
ROBERTS, Angela 8567
BURR, Bill 2775
RAISON, Daryl 771
Party votes
National Party 16302
Labour Party 5779
ACT New Zealand 4658
New Zealand First Party 2882
Green Party 2163
New Zealand Loyal 594
The Opportunities Party (TOP) 511
Te Pāti Māori 328
NewZeal 190
Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 120
Freedoms NZ 106
New Conservatives 86
DemocracyNZ 64
Animal Justice Party 58
Leighton Baker Party 45
New Nation Party 27
Women’s Rights Party 22
Waikato
Votes counted: 34,798
Candidate votes
VAN DE MOLEN, Tim 22692
TOKO, Jamie 7104
HUSBAND, Stuart 2982
OWEN, Megan 1175
DORNAN, Lois 335
Party votes
National Party 17662
Labour Party 6058
ACT New Zealand 4352
New Zealand First Party 2756
Green Party 1739
The Opportunities Party (TOP) 562
New Zealand Loyal 558
Te Pāti Māori 261
NewZeal 195
Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 126
Freedoms NZ 102
New Conservatives 76
DemocracyNZ 71
Animal Justice Party 57
Leighton Baker Party 25
Women’s Rights Party 25
New Nation Party 17
Hauraki-Waikato
Votes counted: 17,851
Candidate votes
MAIPI-CLARKE, Hana-Rawhiti 8825
MAHUTA, Nanaia 7459
POKERE-PHILLIPS, Donna 914
Party votes
Labour Party 8031
Te Pāti Māori 5504
Green Party 1251
National Party 917
New Zealand First Party 760
Freedoms NZ 223
ACT New Zealand 220
New Zealand Loyal 206
Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 152
The Opportunities Party (TOP) 132
NewZeal 104
DemocracyNZ 20
Leighton Baker Party 14
Women’s Rights Party 14
New Conservatives 11
Animal Justice Party 10
New Nation Party 8
Te Tai Hauāuru
Votes counted: 19,017
Candidate votes
NGAREWA-PACKER, Debbie 11695
PEKE-MASON, Soraya 5348
HIPANGO, Harete 1027
WINIATA, Paris 541
Party votes
Te Pāti Māori 6450
Green Party 1445
National Party 899
New Zealand First Party 855
New Zealand Loyal 233
ACT New Zealand 203
Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 186
Freedoms NZ 168
The Opportunities Party (TOP) 125
NewZeal 99
DemocracyNZ 24
Animal Justice Party 23
New Conservatives 20
Leighton Baker Party 14
Women’s Rights Party 10
New Nation Party 5
Waiariki
Votes counted: 21,693
Candidate votes
WAITITI, Rawiri 15890
BOYNTON, Toni 4395
HUNIA, Charles Tiki 844
Party votes
Labour Party 9454
Te Pāti Māori 7891
Green Party 1158
New Zealand First Party 908
National Party 781
Freedoms NZ 302
New Zealand Loyal 185
ACT New Zealand 180
Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 137
NewZeal 124
The Opportunities Party (TOP) 122
DemocracyNZ 25
Animal Justice Party 18
Women’s Rights Party 18
Leighton Baker Party 12
New Conservatives 8
New Nation Party 6
- Source: Electoral Commission
Latest political news and views
Labour leadership: Labour leader Chris Hipkins has affirmed his commitment to the party, but will discuss whether he stays on as leader with caucus today.
The great repeal: If campaign promises are to be believed, a slew of the outgoing Government’s policies are set to be binned under a National-led Government.
Love in a political climate: Labour leader Chris Hipkins has revealed more details about his romance with mystery woman Toni, saying she has been “a highlight of the year”.
NZ’s new PM: The voters have answered the question of whether National Party leader Christopher Luxon is ready to be Prime Minister with a resounding yes. So what kind of PM will he be?
Economy: The change of Government is unlikely to lead to a big shift in the country’s fiscal outlook, economists say.
Comeback king: Winston Peters’ return to Parliament marks a clear pattern over his long political career – a series of bitter defeats followed by sweet victories.
Opinion: Auckland is changing, but the Labour Party isn’t keeping up, writes Simon Wilson.
Coalition deals: Ever wonder what happens inside coalition negotiations with NZ First? David Fisher reveals behind-the-scenes details of two deals.
Māori electorates: There is major change in the Māori electorates as Te Pāti Māori candidates pull off upsets - which could create an overhang in Parliament.
Social media strategy: National racked up hundreds of thousands more video views on social media than Labour as it sought to use sometimes off-the-wall viral trends to energise its election campaign.
South Island electorates: New Zealand’s south could have a new look this parliamentary term after several seats flipped from red to blue and a new party entered the mix.
Election night: The Labour Party party at Lower Hutt Town Hall certainly wasn’t a jubilant night, but it wasn’t quite as depressing as it could have been, writes The Spinoff’s Joel MacManus.
Interactive map: See New Zealand’s election results by overall party vote and for each electorate on our interactive map.
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