The politics of New Zealand function within a framework of an independent, unitary, parliamentary democracy. The system of government is based on the Westminster system, and the legal system is modelled on the common law of England. New Zealand is a constitutional monarchy in which King Charles III is the sovereign and head of state, while his prime minister serves as the head of government.
Winston Raymond Peters is a New Zealand politician who has been the leader of New Zealand First since it was founded in 1993. He was re-elected for a fifteenth time at the 2023 general election, having previously been a member of Parliament (MP) from 1979 to 1981, 1984 to 2008 and 2011 to 2020. Peters has served as the 13th deputy prime minister of New Zealand and 25th minister of foreign affairs since November 2023.
ACT New Zealand, also known as the ACT Party or simply ACT, is a right-wing, classical-liberal political party in New Zealand. It is currently led by David Seymour, and is in coalition with the National and New Zealand First parties, as part of the Sixth National government.
New Zealand First, commonly abbreviated to NZ First, is a populist and nationalist political party in New Zealand. The party formed in 1993 following the resignation of its leader and founder, Winston Peters, from the National Party. Peters had been the Member of Parliament for Tauranga since 1984 and it was the base for New Zealand First until defeats to National Party candidates in 2005 and 2008. The party has formed coalition governments with both major political parties in New Zealand: with the National Party from 1996 to 1998 and 2023 to present, and with the Labour Party from 2005 to 2008 and 2017 to 2020. New Zealand First currently serves in a coalition government with both National and ACT as part of the Sixth National government.
Sir Trevor Colin Mallard is a New Zealand politician. He currently serves as Ambassador of New Zealand to Ireland since 2023. He was a Member of Parliament from 1984 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 2022. He served as Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 2017 until 2022.
Nanaia Cybele Mahuta is a New Zealand former politician who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of New Zealand from 2020 to 2023. In October 2022, Mahuta became the Mother of the House, having served continuously in the House of Representatives since the 1996 general election. She lost her seat in parliament in the 2023 general election.
Anne Merrilyn Tolley is a New Zealand politician and former member of the New Zealand House of Representatives representing the National Party. She was New Zealand's first female Minister of Education from 2008 to 2011 and the first Minister for Children from 2016 to 2017. During the Fifth National Government, she was also Minister of Social Development, Minister of Corrections, Minister of Police and Minister of Local Government. She served as Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives from 2017 to 2020. She is currently the Chair of the Commission overseeing the Tauranga City Council, which was appointed after a review in 2020 identified significant governance problems within the council.
Tuariki John Edward Delamere is a former New Zealand politician and athlete. He was elected to the New Zealand House of Representatives in the Te Tai Rawhiti electorate, representing the New Zealand First party, in the 1996 New Zealand general election. He was later a member of the Te Tawharau party, before losing his seat in 1999.
Christopher Francis Finlayson is a New Zealand lawyer and former Member of Parliament, representing the National Party.
The Ministry for Pacific Peoples (MPP), formerly the Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs, is the public service department of New Zealand charged with advising the New Zealand Government on policies and issues affecting Pasifika communities in New Zealand. MPP seeks to promote the status of Pasifika peoples in New Zealand by keeping them informed of the issues, then acting as an advocate in dealing with other state sector organisations.
Alfred Ngaro is a New Zealand politician, serving as leader of New Zeal since 2023. He was a list member of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 2011 to 2020, representing the National Party.
Paul Jonathan Goldsmith is a New Zealand historian and politician. The biographer of several leading right-wing political and business figures, he was first elected a list member of the New Zealand House of Representatives for the National Party at the 2011 election.
The New Zealand Productivity Commission was an independent Crown entity whose purpose was "to provide advice to the Government on improving productivity in a way that is directed to supporting the overall wellbeing of New Zealanders, having regard to a wide range of communities of interest and population groups in New Zealand society." On 29 February 2023, the Commission ceased operations and was replaced by the new Ministry for Regulation.
David Breen Seymour is a New Zealand politician. He is the leader of ACT New Zealand and the Member of Parliament (MP) for Epsom. He currently serves as the Minister for Regulation in the Sixth National Government of New Zealand.
Peeni Ereatara Gladwyn Henare is a New Zealand Labour Party politician who has been a member of the New Zealand parliament since the 2014 general election. Henare held the Tāmaki Makaurau Māori electorate since 2014 before being defeated by Te Pāti Māori's Takutai Tarsh Kemp in the 2023 general election.
Virginia Ruby Andersen is a New Zealand politician. She has been a Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives for the Labour Party since the 2017 New Zealand general election.
The Sixth Labour Government governed New Zealand from 26 October 2017 to 27 November 2023. It was headed first by Jacinda Ardern and later by Chris Hipkins, as Labour Party leader and prime minister.
The 2023 New Zealand general election was held on 14 October 2023 to determine the composition of the 54th Parliament of New Zealand. Voters elected 122 members to the unicameral New Zealand House of Representatives under the mixed-member proportional (MMP) voting system, with 71 members elected from single-member electorates and the remaining members elected from closed party lists. Of the 72 electorates, only 71 seats were filled, with the remaining electorate MP determined in the 2023 Port Waikato by-election, due to the death of one of the general election candidates. Two overhang seats were added due to Te Pāti Māori winning six electorate seats when the party vote only entitled them to four seats, with an additional overhang seat added after the by-election making for 123 members of parliament.
The 54th New Zealand Parliament is the current meeting of the legislature in New Zealand. It opened on 5 December 2023 following the 14 October 2023 general election, and will expire on or before 16 November 2026 to trigger the next election.
The Sixth National Government is a coalition government comprising the National Party, ACT Party and New Zealand First that has governed New Zealand since November 2023. The government is headed by Christopher Luxon, the National Party leader and prime minister.
