Mike Bain/cvnznews.com
If New Zealand voters were hoping the election campaign would finish with a dignified discussion about economic policy and the future of the nation, Thursday delivered something rather different.
Christopher Luxon spent part of the day on the West Coast explaining he would work with “whoever” it took to keep National in power. Well, almost whoever. Opportunity remains firmly off the guest list.
Moments later, the Prime Minister was spotted wearing a mullet wig at an agricultural festival in Greymouth.
Political analysts are still working out whether the mullet represented a coalition strategy, a cry for help, or simply what happens when a campaign enters its final fortnight.
Meanwhile, a new Anacta poll has thrown another grenade into the coalition calculator. Labour sits on 29 percent, National on 28 percent, with neither party looking capable of getting anywhere near governing alone.
The real winner appears to be Opportunity, which has clawed its way back above the five-percent threshold and may once again find itself holding the balance of power.
Unfortunately for the pollsters, that creates a slight problem. Luxon keeps ruling out Opportunity, despite the numbers increasingly suggesting he may eventually need a seat at the table, a spare chair in the corner, or at least an awkward phone call.
Over on the Coast, ACT leader David Seymour was also on the campaign trail, presumably relieved that someone else’s hair was dominating the political headlines for once.
Elsewhere, Green co-leader Marama Davidson continued explaining the now-famous gang pad visit involving Green candidates and Te Pāti Māori representatives. Davidson confirmed she had spoken with Labour leader Chris Hipkins, although whether the conversation involved an apology remains one of the great unsolved mysteries of the campaign.
Hipkins, meanwhile, spent the day in Poverty Bay-Tairāwhiti attempting the increasingly difficult task of looking prime-ministerial while also looking relatable.
Shane Jones was in Balclutha hosting a public meeting, presumably proving yet again that no New Zealand town is too small to receive a Shane Jones speech.
And looming over everyone is Tuesday night’s final leaders’ debate.
With the polls tightening, coalition options shrinking, and mullets making an unexpected appearance, voters may be forgiven for wondering whether they’re choosing a government or casting the next season of a political reality show.
At this point, only one thing seems certain: election night arithmetic may be even messier than Luxon’s wig.
