E nga rau rangatira mā, e kui mā, e koro mā, e huihui nei, tēnei aku mihi māhana ki a koutou. Kia ora tātou katoa.
I specifically acknowledge: Hon Justice Simon Moore KC, Chair of the Board, Electoral Commission; Karl Le Quesne, Chief Electoral Officer and Chief Executive, Electoral Commission; Hone Matthews, Chief Advisor Māori, Electoral Commission; Anusha Guler, Acting Deputy Chief Executive, Operations, Electoral Commission.
Tēnā kōutou.
Thank you for your invitation to address you all today – and to once again share my appreciation – and that of all New Zealanders, for the essential work you do to support the functioning of our democracy.
It was a little over three years ago when I last addressed you all, ahead of the 2023 General Election. In preparing for today, I returned to those remarks, and the pre-election speeches delivered by other Governors-General over the years.
In doing so, I was struck once again by the effort required, from so many people, in order to keep a democracy strong and vibrant. Ours is not a passive, self-sustaining system of government, but one that requires citizens to contribute, participate, and be engaged.
It also requires the solid foundations that your important work lays down. As returning officers, you are at the coal face, making our electoral system function. On behalf of all New Zealanders, I thank you for that. Without free, fair, and trustworthy elections, there can be no democracy.
When I last spoke to you in 2023, I noted that that year was the 30th anniversary of the vote in favour of MMP. This year is the 30th anniversary of the first MMP election, back in 1996, and the General Election later this year will be our 11th MMP election. New Zealanders are now familiar with MMP – we know that our constitutional arrangements are flexible and responsive – and that we are well equipped to accommodate the various possible outcomes of an MMP election.
Over the last 30 years, we have seen coalition governments, minority governments with support arrangements for confidence and supply, combinations of both, and a majority government. The 2023 election returned our first three-party coalition Government, and since then we have had our first prearranged and agreed rotation of Deputy Prime Minister.
Over the years, we have adapted to arrangements that might once have been seen as a major shift in our constitution. But despite the evolution of our system, there are some core and constant requirements.
One of those is the responsibility of the Governor-General, in the aftermath of an election, to ascertain where the confidence of the House of Representatives lies, and to appoint a Government accordingly. In doing that, as Governor-General I will continue to look for a prospective government to have two things: ‘quantity and clarity’.
‘Quantity’ refers to the necessary quantity of support in the House. In our representative democracy, New Zealanders vote for a political party, and a local MP, not directly for a Government. As a result, Governments receive their democratic legitimacy indirectly, through the House. Any party wishing to form a Government needs to demonstrate that they have the necessary support in the House to win a confidence vote.
This can be achieved in a number of ways. Occasionally, a single party may simply command a majority in the House on their own. More commonly, two or more parties will come to an arrangement to form a Government together, perhaps on the basis of coalition agreements, or confidence and supply agreements.
It is open to any party to seek to meet the threshold of the necessary quantity of support – the largest party in Parliament has no greater right to form a government than any other. Unlike in many systems, parties need not receive an invitation before attempting to form a government – and smaller parties are not required to wait for larger parties to try to form a government first.
Equally important is the ‘clarity’ of whatever support arrangements are reached. Since the introduction of MMP, governments have always been formed in New Zealand before the House sits and holds a formal confidence vote. We have never been in the situation where the House has had to hold votes on a range of different possible governments in order to confirm where the majority lies.
In the absence of such a vote, I rely on clear, unambiguous and public statements from political leaders, indicating who is forming government, with whose support, and on what terms.
For the last 30 years, parties have done this well; all support arrangements under MMP have been agreed in writing, announced publicly, and honoured in the key, early confidence votes in the House. It is my expectation that this commitment to clarity will continue.
On several occasions, New Zealanders have gone to bed on election night with a clear sense of who will lead the next Government; and on just as many, they have not. Whether the outcome of this year’s election is immediately clear on election night or requires negotiations between parties, New Zealanders can have confidence that we live in a mature democracy, a flexible constitution, and an electoral system that we have now had in place for 30 years.
I have sometimes been asked what would happen if it looks like no government can be formed following a period of negotiations. In that event, statutory provisions come into play. Because of the timing of the 2026 election, Parliament will be required to sit again no later than the 14th of January, even if no government has been appointed. The caretaker government would remain in place, and I would deliver a Speech from the Throne on its behalf. At that point, parties would have the opportunity to move confidence votes to ascertain whether a majority can be achieved.
If it then became clear that no government could be formed, another election may be required. The caretaker Prime Minister would be expected to consult other parties and seek majority support for calling a new election; in that situation, it would be up to Members of Parliament to ensure that the Governor-General is never required to consider calling an election without Ministerial advice.
But underpinning all of that is the extraordinary work that you do; without your contribution, none of these scenarios would be possible. Before members can be elected, before Ministers can be appointed, and before New Zealanders can be represented, we need the free, fair, and trusted elections that you deliver.
I know you will all play your part this year with integrity and to the best of your abilities. Thank you for all that you do, both as professionals and as citizens, to nurture and maintain our democracy.