# Labour Edges Ahead of National in New Zealand’s Preliminary Count All 9,389 voting-place results have been reported in New Zealand’s preliminary count; Labour leads National by 3,650 party votes, with official results due November 27. By Will Langan | 24X7 News Published: 2026-11-07T06:06:45.195Z Updated: 2026-11-07T14:06:50.189Z Section: World Format: News Canonical: https://24x7news.us/articles/new-zealand-general-election-count-november-7-2026 Update — November 7, 2026, 8:06 a.m. Central / November 8, 3:06 a.m. New Zealand Time New Zealand’s Electoral Commission reported all 9,389 voting-place results in its preliminary count when checked. Labour finished this stage with 710,330 party votes, or 29.36%, compared with National’s 706,680, or 29.21%—a difference of 3,650 votes. The displayed total was 2,418,565 party votes. The commission’s preliminary seat projection gave National 42 seats, Labour 36, the Greens 16, ACT New Zealand 13, New Zealand First 12, the Opportunity Party seven and Te Pāti Māori five, for a projected Parliament of 131 seats. Those figures are the commission’s provisional allocation, not a final declaration or an announcement of a governing agreement. Completion of voting-place reporting does not mean every eligible ballot has been included. Special votes and the checks required for the official count remain separate from the election-night preliminary process. The commission continues to state that these are not the formal results; official results are scheduled for November 27. This update records completion of preliminary voting-place reporting as observed at the time above. It does not declare an election winner or who will form the next government. Earlier Update — November 7, 2026, 6:06 a.m. Central / November 8, 1:06 a.m. New Zealand Time Labour edged ahead of National in the Electoral Commission’s preliminary party-vote count as reported voting-place results reached 99.0%. Labour had 706,144 votes, or 29.31%, and National had 704,714, or 29.25%—a margin of 1,430 votes when checked. The Green Party had 13.30%, ACT New Zealand 10.93%, New Zealand First 9.77% and the Opportunity Party 5.97%. The displayed total was 2,408,567 party votes. This reverses the narrow party-vote lead in the previous snapshot, but does not determine who will form a government. The figures remain preliminary; official results are scheduled for November 27. Earlier Update — November 7, 2026, 5:06 a.m. Central / November 8, 12:06 a.m. New Zealand Time The Electoral Commission’s preliminary count reached 96.3% of voting-place results, with National’s party-vote lead over Labour narrowing to 2,751 votes. National had 697,536 votes, or 29.31%, and Labour had 694,785, or 29.20%, when checked. The Green Party had 13.28%, ACT New Zealand 10.98%, New Zealand First 9.80% and the Opportunity Party 5.97%. The displayed total was 2,379,112 party votes. Despite the count passing 95% of voting-place results, these figures remain preliminary and do not declare a winner or governing coalition. Official results are scheduled for November 27. Earlier Update — November 7, 2026, 4:04 a.m. Central / 11:04 p.m. New Zealand Time National retained a narrow lead over Labour as the Electoral Commission’s preliminary count reached 88.6% of voting-place results. National had 667,524 party votes, or 29.33%, while Labour had 662,461, or 29.11%—a gap of 5,063 votes when checked. The Green Party stood at 13.33%, ACT New Zealand at 11.03%, New Zealand First at 9.83% and the Opportunity Party at 5.92%. The displayed total had risen to 2,275,422 party votes. The count is still preliminary: neither the party-vote lead nor this snapshot is a declaration of a winner or governing coalition. Official results are scheduled for November 27. Earlier Update — November 7, 2026, 3:02 a.m. Central / 10:02 p.m. New Zealand Time National moved back into a narrow lead in the Electoral Commission’s preliminary nationwide party-vote count. With 63.7% of voting-place results reported when checked, National had 559,359 party votes, or 29.45%, and Labour had 554,720, or 29.20%—a difference of 4,639 votes. The Green Party had 13.62%, ACT New Zealand 10.92%, New Zealand First 9.65% and the Opportunity Party 5.75%. The displayed total was 1,899,175 party votes. These are changing, incomplete results; the lead in party votes does not itself establish who will form a government. Official results remain scheduled for November 27. Earlier Update — November 7, 2026, 2:04 a.m. Central / 9:04 p.m. New Zealand Time Labour moved narrowly ahead of National in the Electoral Commission’s preliminary nationwide party-vote count. With 34.7% of voting-place results reported when checked, Labour had 447,717 party votes, or 29.87%, while National had 440,122, or 29.36%—a gap of 7,595 votes. The Green Party had 14.07%, ACT New Zealand 10.53%, New Zealand First 9.35% and the Opportunity Party 5.43%. The commission’s displayed total was 1,498,821 party votes. These are incomplete, changing figures, not a declaration of an election winner or a governing coalition. Official results remain scheduled for November 27. Earlier Update — November 7, 2026, 1:04 a.m. Central / 8:04 p.m. New Zealand Time National and Labour were nearly level in the Electoral Commission’s early nationwide party-vote count, with 22.5% of voting-place results reported when checked. National had 366,954 party votes, or 29.90%, and Labour had 362,354, or 29.52%—a difference of 4,600 votes. The Green Party stood at 13.58%, ACT New Zealand at 10.71%, New Zealand First at 9.58% and the Opportunity Party at 5.41%. The figures are a snapshot of an incomplete count and can change as further voting-place results arrive. The commission labels the figures preliminary and says they are not the formal declaration of results. Official results remain scheduled for November 27. No winning party or governing coalition has been declared in this account. Earlier — Voting Closes New Zealand reached the scheduled close of voting in its general election at 7 p.m. local time on Saturday, November 7, moving into the election-night counting period set out by the Electoral Commission. The deadline corresponds to midnight Saturday in U.S. Central time. The commission’s results website says preliminary figures will be released progressively after voting closes. It has set targets of reporting results from half of voting places by 10 p.m. and 95% by 11:30 p.m., while cautioning that these are targets rather than guarantees. Those election-night figures are preliminary. The commission expects to declare the official results on Friday, November 27, after further checks and the processing of special votes. New Zealand counts ballots by hand. The preliminary process covers advance votes and ordinary votes cast on election day, with scrutineers present. Advance-vote counting can begin at secure electorate headquarters from 9 a.m. on election day; ordinary ballots are counted after voting closes. The official count begins the following day. Election staff check the electoral roll, verify eligibility for special votes and recheck the papers counted on election night. Special votes can arrive for up to 10 days after election day, which is one reason the final declaration comes later. The timetable separates the first public indication of voting from the formal result. This report does not declare a winning party, project seats or treat early totals as final. Advance voting began October 26, following the start of overseas voting October 21. The published timetable sets December 3 as the last day for the return of the writ, the formal electoral document following the count. Sources: New Zealand Electoral Commission — Election Results Website. New Zealand Electoral Commission — 2026 Election Timetable. New Zealand Electoral Commission — Vote-Counting Procedure. New Zealand Electoral Commission — Progressive Preliminary Party-Vote Count. ## Sources - Electoral Commission — Election Results Website: https://www.electionresults.govt.nz/ - Electoral Commission — 2026 Election Timetable: https://elections.nz/media-and-news/2026/key-dates-for-2026-general-election - Electoral Commission — Vote-Counting Procedure: https://elections.nz/democracy-in-nz/about-elections/how-are-general-election-votes-counted - Archive photograph — Andrew Smith, The Beehive, July13 2010; CC BY-SA2.0: https://www.flickr.com/photos/andrew_annemarie/4839903737/ - Electoral Commission — Progressive Preliminary Party-Vote Count, checked November7: https://electionresults.govt.nz/ge2026/ - Electoral Commission — Electorate Status: 9,389 of 9,389 results, checked November 7: https://electionresults.govt.nz/ge2026/electorate-status.html