Luxon faces voter disagreement over ruling out Opportunity Party deal

National leader Christopher Luxon has repeatedly ruled out forming a coalition with the Opportunity Party. He stated he has ruled them out in the same manner as Labour, the Greens, and Te Pāti Māori. Luxon cited the party's desire for a land tax, which he noted does not go down well in rural New Zealand.

The refusal has caused friction with some National Party supporters, including farmer Iain Wright, who suggested Luxon should publicly disclose a willingness to form a coalition with Opportunity to avoid being in Opposition. A poll shows 57% of National voters believe Luxon should abandon his rule-out and seek an agreement with Qiulae Wong’s party if necessary.

Opportunity leader Qiulae Wong has stated she plans to call Luxon to initiate negotiations if National is the highest polling party on election day. However, Wong has also said, "We are not here to prop up the current coalition government. If that coalition agreement was put in front of us, we would have walked away".

The political landscape remains uncertain as the November 7 election approaches. While Luxon has refused to commit to resigning if he reverses his position, some observers suggest he might have to resign to make a reversal politically palatable if he cannot form a government without Opportunity.

How it developed

• Thu 22 Oct, 4:07pmNational's polling showed a four-point increase to 32% in a 1News Verian poll.

Where reports differ

• Luxon has been asked if he would resign rather than work with Opportunity; he called the question ridiculous and a hypothetical.

Compiled from reports by Stuff, The Post, Newsroom, 1News and RNZ.