Christopher Luxon weathered the weekend storm but faces many more polls before November – Editorial
THE FACTS
- A Taxpayers’ Union poll last week had the National Party at 28.4%.
- Senior figures Nicola Willis and Erica Stanford emphasised the need for the party to improve quickly.
- PM Christopher Luxon has insisted he was not considering stepping aside.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon appears to have weathered the weekend storm.
Speculation began to swirl at the end of last week about the security of his position in the top job, after a dreadful Taxpayers’ Union poll showed the National Party had sunk to its lowest point in that poll since Luxon took the leadership in late 2021.
Sitting on just 28.4%, only a few points higher than its disastrous 25.58% at the 2020 election, every member of the National caucus would have had a few sleepless nights and contemplated some what-ifs.
If converted into seats in the House, the poll result would see the party lose 12 of the 48 seats it won at the last election.
While National’s MPs have since filed in behind their leader, some, including senior figures Nicola Willis and Erica Stanford, have publicly said the party needs to improve – quickly.
“We’ve got to do better all of us together, pull together and remember our focus is on the New Zealand people,” Stanford said.
Luxon, meanwhile, said he was not bothered by one poll and was not considering his future as the country’s leader, or the prospect of stepping aside.
But he did have a chat with his mentor and former PM Sir John Key over the weekend. Just a day before the poll results reached Luxon like a punch to the gut, Key was enjoying his time post-politics out on the golf course, ahead of a professional tournament at his home club.
Luxon “largely rings me [and] I largely listen”, Key told the Herald.
Apparently, according to Luxon, the pair talked putts, not polls. But the conversation surely would have included politics. Luxon, to his credit, has realised the urgency required to quell any hint of a coup. He made a surprise appearance on Heather du Plessis-Allan’s Newstalk ZB show on Friday afternoon to assure listeners he wasn’t going anywhere.
Most would agree Luxon’s performance as Prime Minister has been a mixed bag at best. There have been wins in areas like education, and there have been fumbles over foreign policy issues, highlighted last week by his stuttering responses to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
During his post-Cabinet press conference this week, Luxon did look more assured as he returned to familiar ground by responding to questions about international supply chains and oil prices.
He will, however, ultimately be judged by the electorate on what he campaigned on in 2023 – the domestic economy.
Do you and your family feel better off financially now than you were three years ago? Right now, Luxon is losing the answer to that question.
The polls are tight, and there will be many more of them before November. But Luxon will need National’s numbers to return to being above 30% – or he may be sailing directly into another storm of leadership questions.