Nats Continue Talks w/ACT & NZF Ahead Of Final Results On 3 Nov

New Zealand's likely next Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has stated that talks will continue between his centre-right Nationals and their likely coalition partners - the classical liberal ACT and populist NZ First - as the country awaits the final declaration of 'special votes' set to be released on 3 Nov. The Nationals and ACT won a combined 61 out of 121 seats according to preliminary results.

• However, with the addition of the 'special votes' (around half a million overseas voters, those voting outside their electorate, and those who registered on election day) the number of 'overhang' seats in the House of Representatives is likely to increase meaning a two-party coalition is not possible. As such, the Nats and ACT are set to require the support of former Deputy PM Winston Peters' NZF to command a majority.
• The Diplomat on foreign policy divergences within the potential gov't: "Engagement with China, New Zealand’s largest trading partner, is another area of potential tension for the negotiating parties. National recently said they were open to direct investment from China to fund infrastructure projects, but the ACT Party said in no uncertain terms that they would prevent this."