SHOCKING: Mmp | Mind Blowing Facts

New Zealand election 2026: How the MMP voting system works and why smaller parties could decide who forms government

With New Zealand's 54th Parliament preparing to close its doors for the upcoming elections on November 7, the unique Mixed Member Proportional representation system takes center stage. This voting mechanism empowers smaller parties, as citizens cast two votes—one for an electorate candidate and another for a political party. Given the…

The Economic Times · Sep 23

‘We’ll slaughter the bastards’ – how Bob Jones and the New Zealand Party changed politics in 1984

With New Zealand’s 11th election under the MMP proportional system due in November, it’s easy to take the influence of minor parties for granted. But just over 40 years ago, things were very different.

The Conversation · Sep 9

‘So hacked off’: as election nears, New Zealanders despair at the main parties – and Opportunity knocks

National and Labour have passed government back and forth for years but many voters are no longer content with politics as usual

The Guardian - AU · Aug 25

With so many parties ‘ruling out’ working with other parties, is MMP losing its way?

There has been a lot of “ruling out” going on in New Zealand politics lately. In the most recent outbreak, both the incoming and outgoing deputy prime ministers, ACT’s David Seymour and NZ First’s Winston Peters, ruled out ever working with the Labour Party.

The Conversation · Jun 10, 2025

Voices: Readers have their say on reforming Britain’s electoral system – from PR to compulsory voting

You emphasised the need for comprehensive electoral reform, but couldn’t agree on what form that should take

The Independent UK · Jul 12, 2024

A nation reinvented: 40 years on from its 1984 victory, the Fourth Labour Government still defines NZ

It’s easy to look back at the bad haircuts, beige clothes and brown Beehive carpets and chuckle. But whatever one’s views on its aesthetics, the Fourth Labour Government – elected 40 years ago on July 14 – was no laughing matter.

The Conversation · Jul 11, 2024

Disproportional representation: what the UK election landslide would look like under NZ’s MMP system

At first glance, Keir Starmer’s Labour Party has just put in a performance for the ages in the British general election.

The Conversation · Jul 6, 2024

‘It needs to stay in the loop’: German reuse schemes turn shopping upside down

After success of bottle deposit schemes, some retailers are trying to widen culture of reuse – and start tackling Europe’s waste problem

The Guardian - UK · Jul 4, 2024

NZ PM-to-be Luxon unveils coalition compromises

New Zealand's National party has shed a number of its election promises as it negotiated a coalition agreement with the ACT and NZ First parties.

AAP · Nov 24, 2023

Three parties, two deals, one government: the stress points within New Zealand's 'coalition of many colours'

It might have taken six weeks to decide the shape of New Zealand’s next government (or three if you count from the final results), but in the end that is the nature of proportional representation. Compromise, trade-offs and haggling are the price of an MMP electoral system designed to avoid…

The Conversation · Nov 24, 2023