Election 2026: Carl Bates re-elected in Whanganui, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer in Te Tai Hauāuru

“I’m feeling very humbled that the Whanganui electorate has recognised the huge amount of work over the last three years.

“It’s that old adage, you ask a busy person to do something, and they get it done.”

He said he would continue to be “an active and engaged local MP”.

“This is a large electorate now so the team will grow a little bit.

“It’s fantastic that my colleagues around the boundaries are all being returned this evening - Suze (Redmayne) in Rangitīkei, Louise Upston in Taupo, Barbara Kuriger in Taranaki-King Country, and David MacLeod in New Plymouth.”

Bates spent the evening at the Laird Park Bowling Club, alongside his family and supporters.

Bates told the Chronicle he started the day with Parkrun, voted, had a coffee with his family, and did Get Out The Vote calling.

There were also National election functions in Ohakune, Stratford and Hāwera.

“We ran a really good campaign, and I’ve got an amazing team. Lots of people got involved,” he said.

“We’ll see how the night unfolds in terms of the party vote and seats across the country.”

Roberts said she was “really disappointed” by the results but was proud of the campaign she and her team had run.

“This is a fantastic community, and it would’ve been a real privilege to have served it as a member of Parliament, but it was not to be.”

Roberts said she would continue to fight for the causes she ran on, particularly education.

“It just shifts the fight really from fighting to become a member of Parliament to taking the fight for public education and for provincial New Zealand [elsewhere].

“It just means I have to do it in a different way.”

Roberts went in person to concede the election to Bates at his watch party.“

“You’ve got to shake the man’s hand and you know, that’s out of respect for democracy as much as for him.”

“Everybody puts a lot on the line, and not just him, but his family, and so of course, I’m always going to be acknowledging that in person.”

Roberts spent the evening with her campaign staff at The Barracks Sports Bar & Restaurant in Whanganui.

“For us this is about the next three years for New Zealand, first and foremost.

“And to spend the night with these amazing people, who have fought so hard for the country and for the electorate.

Roberts said she would be spending the evening “watching the numbers roll in”.

“Every time everything rolls through, it will change.”

Roberts said she spent earlier today “doing fun things around Whanganui” including going to the Whanganui River Markets and the Vinyl Room record store.

Hipango-Brownlie told the Chronicle she had “a slow coffee to get me into the day”.

The party’s election function is at the Vic Bar on Victoria Ave.

“We did a few errands; it’s been very chill. I rang around a number of my candidate colleagues this morning,” she said.

“Now, many people are waiting with bated breath.

“In terms of the campaign, we’ve done as much as we can. Not just here in the Whanganui electorate, but the whole team.”

She said she and husband Bob Brownlie voted at Castlecliff Primary School, his old school.

With 85% of the vote counted, Bates sits on 17,667, Roberts on 11,880, Hipango-Brownlie on 3091 followed by the Animal Justice Party’s Sandra Kyle on 556 and Balance New Zealand’s Juan Coffey on 302.

Rangitīkei

Incumbent National Party MP Suze Redmayne leads the Rangitīkei electorate by 5239 with 90.9% of the vote counted over Labour’s Karl Severinsen.

Suze Redmayne is at Tatum in Levin with campaign staff and supporters.

“We’ve got a great crowd of people here, people who have helped through the campaign,” she said.

“It’s a different election to 2023 because the boundary changes mean 43% of the electorate is brand new. And I always knew that that was going to be a bit of a challenge, but also one that I look forward to.

She said she was “incredibly proud” to be part of the National-led Government and was “keen to pursue” the same goals during the next three years.

Severinsen is spending election night at the Levin RSA with supporters.

“We’ve got a big crowd here already. A lot of my supporters have all turned up, so we’re just going to watch with anticipation and see how it goes.”

He said he was “feeling pretty good” so far this evening.

“I’ve run a pretty hard campaign,” Severinsen said.

“The party vote is trending our way slowly, which is great for the overall.

“Everyone’s been predicting the entire time it’s going to be a close election, and I think it’s been panning out exactly that way.”

With 87.9% of the vote counted in Rangitīkei, National incumbent Suze Redmayne has secured 14,901 votes ahead of Labour’s Karl Severinsen on 10,186.

NZ First’s Steve Gibson has 3166, followed by ACT’s Andrew Hoggard with 2919, Green Party’s Bernard Long with 2379, New Zealand Outdoors & Freedom Party’s Cedric Backhouse with 206, and NZ Loyal’s Jason Smith with 149.

Te Tai Hauāuru

With 94.6% of the vote counted, incumbent and Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer leads Labour’s Te Pūoho Kātene by 3765 votes in Te Tai Hauāuru.

Ngarewa-Packer is spending the evening at the TSB Hub in Hāwera.

“We are having a great party with an amazing band, Lights Go Out from Whanganui,” she said.

“Everyone has worked so hard, and we’ve come together to celebrate, no matter what.

“We’ve had excellent candidates, and you always want to mihi to them and their families.

She said the party had put out a strategy and “it looks like our people listened to that strategy and believed in it”.

Kātene said he had called Debbie Ngarewa-Packer to congratulate her on her victory.

“What I’ve said the whole journey that we’ve gone through in this campaign is that this is about giving Te Tai Hauāuru a choice, and Te Tai Hauāuru has spoken and have made their choice,” he said.

“[I also] have taken from this that they’ve appreciated that choice, and I think it’s clear that having options available to them, for them to make their decisions of who’s going to carry their voice and carry their mana into Parliament, has been something that has hit a good spot in our communities.”

Kātene said he was grateful for his campaign team and had learned a lot during his first political campaign, lessons that he would now take with him as he decided his next steps.

“I have enjoyed every second, and I’m very grateful for the adventure that I’ve had.”

“This is just the first step.”

Kātene is at the Labour Party headquarters in Upper Hutt and he said he was now focused on supporting other party candidates “as they fight their tight races in order for us to change this government”.

With 91.8% of the vote counted Ngarewa-Packer has 14,044 votes with Kātene on 10,296 and National’s Coral Raukawa on 1028.