John MacDonald: The rise and rise of NZ First

NZ First is on the up, according to the latest 1News Verian poll. The result out last night had Winston Peters’ party on 10 percent - its highest rating in that particular poll since August 2017. It comes just a few weeks after a Taxpayers’ Union poll ranked NZ First the third most popular party in Parliament. Ask NZ Herald chief political reporter Jamie Ensor and he’ll tell you more and more voters are liking the party because of its cautious approach on immigration and climate change policies. That it’s a party that is seen as anti-establishment and has, as he puts it, “a charismatic no-nonsense leader”. That bit about Winston Peters being anti-establishment is a reference to his flirtatious relationship with the conspiracy theory brigade. Which tends to be the Winston Peters we see here at home. When he’s running around community halls up and down the country barking into microphones. When he jumps on a plane, though, and heads overseas as the Foreign Affairs Minister, he’s a completely different guy, isn’t he? Nevertheless, whatever version we get on any given day, more people seem to be liking it. My theory is that NZ First is only on the rise because all the other options are so bad. I can’t believe that two-and-a-half years on from the last election, I’m still in the same boat and have no idea who I want to vote for. That’s how I felt at the last election and that’s how I’m feeling now. I’ve spoken to plenty of people recently who say they’re looking seriously at NZ First. People of all ages. What has surprised me most, is the number of young people who seem to like what the party is saying about immigration. These are people who aren’t just seeing NZ First as an option because they don’t think any of the other parties are offering anything. They’re actually liking what the party is saying. And that’s what we’re seeing in the polls. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.