New Zealand 1996 general election
What was the result of the 1996 general election in New Zealand?
New Zealand National Party won 44 of 120 seats with 33.8% of the vote. 88.3% of registered voters cast a ballot.
New Zealand- Held:
- Final result
- ParlGov, read 5 October 2026
Which party won the most seats?
Final results from ParlGov, read : New Zealand National Party won 44 of 120 seats with 33.8% of the vote; 88.3% of registered voters cast a ballot, up 3.1 points on 1993.
- New Zealand National Party 44 −6 seats 33.8% −1.2 points
- New Zealand Labour Party 37 −8 seats 28.2% −6.5 points
- New Zealand First 17 +15 seats 13.3% +5.0 points
- Alliance 13 +11 seats 10.1% −8.1 points
- ACT New Zealand 8 6.1%
- Christian Heritage Party of New Zealand 0 0 seats 4.3% +2.3 points
- Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 0 1.7%
- United New Zealand 1 0.9%
- Seats won
- Change on the previous election at the right
- Share of the vote
- Share at the previous election
- Change in points at the right
Changes are against the New Zealand 1993 general election, party by party.
- New Zealand National Party44
- New Zealand Labour Party37
- New Zealand First17
- Alliance13
- ACT New Zealand8
- United New Zealand1
Key numbers
33.8%
Share of the vote won by New Zealand National Party
New Zealand National Party won 44 of 120 seats. A majority needs 61.
+15 seats
Seats gained by New Zealand First
The largest gain in seats compared with 1993. New Zealand Labour Party lost 8 seats.
88.3%
Voter turnout
Up 3.1 points on 1993.
Seats and votes by party
| Party | Seats | ± seats | % | ± points | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand National Party | 44 | −6 | 33.8 | −1.2 | 701,315 |
| New Zealand Labour Party | 37 | −8 | 28.2 | −6.5 | 584,159 |
| New Zealand First | 17 | +15 | 13.3 | +5.0 | 276,603 |
| Alliance | 13 | +11 | 10.1 | −8.1 | 209,347 |
| ACT New Zealand | 8 | 6.1 | 126,442 | ||
| Christian Heritage Party of New Zealand | 0 | 0 | 4.3 | +2.3 | 89,716 |
| Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party | 0 | 1.7 | 34,398 | ||
| United New Zealand | 1 | 0.9 | 18,245 |
± is the change against the New Zealand 1993 general election, party by party.
Votes by party
- New Zealand National Party 701,315
- New Zealand Labour Party 584,159
- New Zealand First 276,603
- Alliance 209,347
- ACT New Zealand 126,442
- Christian Heritage Party of New Zealand 89,716
- Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party 34,398
- United New Zealand 18,245
ParlGov lists parties with at least 1 percent of the vote or 2 seats, so the rows do not add up to the valid votes.
How many people voted?
88.3% of the 2,418,587 registered voters cast a ballot (2,135,175 ballots), up 3.1 points on 1993. 2,072,359 of them were valid votes. The highest turnout since 1987 in our data.
How do the votes compare with the seats?
- New Zealand National Party33.8% of votes36.7% of seats
- New Zealand Labour Party28.2% of votes30.8% of seats
- New Zealand First13.3% of votes14.2% of seats
- Alliance10.1% of votes10.8% of seats
- ACT New Zealand6.1% of votes6.7% of seats
- United New Zealand0.9% of votes0.8% of seats
- Christian Heritage Party of New Zealand4.3% of votes0.0% of seats
The Gallagher index of disproportionality is 4.4 (0 when seats follow votes exactly); the effective number of parties is 4.4 by votes and 3.8 by seats; New Zealand National Party led New Zealand Labour Party by 5.7 points of the vote.
Time and source Data as of