SHIFT TO THE RIGHT

New Zealand Boots Out Party Once Led By Jacinda Ardern

Former Air New Zealand CEO Chris Luxon will be New Zealand’s new prime minister after his National Party won enough seats to form a coalition with its right-wing allies.

New Zealand has elected a conservative government after six years of the Labour government once led by Jacinda Ardern. Former Air New Zealand chief executive Christopher Luxon will become the country’s new prime minister, leading a coalition government with the libertarian ACT Party. Labour leader Chris Hipkins, replaced Ardern in January. Support for the Labour Party, which won 50 per cent of the vote in 2020, dropped to 27 per cent. The National Party won 39 percent of the vote, up from 26 percent in 2020. Among the smaller parties, the Green Party took 11 percent of the vote, and ACT won 9 percent. About 96 per cent of the vote has been counted.