The results from a recent poll in New Zealand come in bearing positive news for Jacinda Ardern and the Labour Party. The Current NZ Prime Minister and her party have secured 60.9 percent popularity. Meanwhile, the opposition party, The New Zealand National Party’s stood at 25.1 percent.
Newshub-Reid Research Poll results
In fact, the Labour Party's popularity currently stands at the highest it has ever been in the Newshub-Reid Research poll's history. The poll was conducted between 16-24 July 2020. Of the one thousand people who were surveyed, 700 participants were interviewed via telephone (both landlines and mobiles) and 300 by internet.
The National Party popularity has dropped by 5.5 points, to 25.1 percent. The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand gathered 5.7 percent and New Zealand First stood at two percent. ACT New Zealand won 3.3 percent votes and the other minority parties couldn’t crack even the one percent mark.
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When translated into the number of seats in the Parliament, the Labour Party gets a whopping 77 seats out of 120 and National stands at less than half of that, 32. The Green Party had seven seats according to their popularity percentage and ACT, four.
The population’s approval form Jacinda Ardern
The survey participants were also asked about their trust in the leaders. Undoubtedly, Ardern had an overwhelming 79.4 percent positive responses and only 17 percent negative with only scanty numbers unsure of their decision. Contrarily, only 30.8 percent of people trusted Judith Collins, the leader of National Party and 49.7 said they didn’t. 19.6 percent remain undecided about their trust in Collins.
In the preferred Prime Minister polls, Jacinda Ardern again managed to surpass everyone by a long stretch. She stood at 62 percent while Collins garnered 14.6 percent votes. Simon Bridges, of the National Party, managed to secure 4.5 percent.
"We're focused on what matters to them," Ardern said about her election strategy. "I've never, ever taken for granted the fact that we are here because New Zealanders put us here. We're never, ever complacent,” she said in response to Collins' accusations of the Labour Party being arrogant.
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Ardern has been known for her deft management of COVID-19 outbreak. With reportedly only 1,559 cases and 22 deaths, the country has contained the spread of the virus better than many. The world’s youngest female head has dealt with a terrorist attack, a volcanic eruption, and a global pandemic all in one term. With the results of the poll, it suffices to say that Ardern's chances of being re-elected look promising.
Image Credit: WikiCommons
Bhavya Gupta is an intern with SheThePeople.TV.