NZ Election 2026

Palmerston North electorate

Palmerston North covers urban Palmerston North and a few outlying settlements such as Bunnythorpe, Turitea and Longburn. The seat is held by Labour’s Tangi Utikere, who was first elected in 2020 and was reelected in 2023 with a margin of 43%. National won the party vote with 34%, followed by Labour on 31%. The electorate boasts the highest percentage of New Zealand sign language speakers in the country out of any electorate.

Palmerston North candidates

Explore the candidates in your area

Tangi Utikere

Labour Party

Bruce McGechan

ACT Party

Netra Ghimire

Opportunity Party

Teanau Tuiono

Green Party

Brian Baker

Animal Justice Party

Ankit Bansal

National Party

Helma Vermuelen

NZ First

Bruce McGechan

ACT Party

Why I'm standing

I am asking you to give your party vote to ACT. I want more ACT MPs who will fight to cut waste and grow the country, balance the books with no new taxes, defend equal rights, deliver better public services, cut red tape, and restore real consequences for crime. In our electorate, I'm asking you to choose whichever electorate candidate you believe will best represent the area and give your party vote to ACT.

About me

I'm putting NZ ahead of personal ambition. I'm not asking you to elect me as your local MP. I'm asking you to give your party vote to ACT to Lock Labour Out and Unlock New Zealand's potential. It means keeping the coalition Government in power, but ensuring that it can go further and faster on the issues that matter most to you. A party vote for ACT will re-elect the Government and make it stronger.

My priorities

  1. Grow the economy to balance the books with no new taxes so incomes rise faster than living costs.
  2. Deliver better services for taxpayers: education, police, and match Australia on medicines funding.
  3. Make decisions based on need, not race, and with one law for all and one future together.

Get across the policies, candidates and parties

Don’t know who to vote for? Policy.nz is the complete guide to the 2026 general election. Compare the parties, candidates and policies to see where you stand.

Policies

Compare the parties’ positions on the key issues this election

Candidates

See the electorate candidates running in your local area

Parties

Learn about each political party, its leaders and candidate list

Things to know...

Your two votes shape New Zealand’s next parliament. You need to be enrolled to vote.

Read explainer

  • Enrol to vote by Sunday 25 October

    You need to be enrolled before you can vote. You can enrol online at vote.nz.

  • Voting day is Saturday 7 November

    Head to your nearest voting place on the day, or vote early from 26 October.

  • You get two votes

    One for a party (the party vote) and one for a person in your area (the electorate vote).

  • Your party vote is the most powerful

    It decides how many seats each party gets in Parliament. That’s what Policy helps you figure out.