Evidence · NZ Election 2026

Every question, every answer, every source

Everything the study collected, as it was collected on 5 October 2026. Read any answer in full, or download the tables behind every figure in the study.

questions
174
voters the questions were written as
32
answers collected, of 820 planned
815
answers compared like for like
800
pairs of national and town answers
124
answers with sources recorded
774
answers that showed a link
304

01

Every question, with its answers

Each question was written as a voter would ask it and went to all four assistants. Some were also asked from a town. Open a question to read every answer to it in full.

Showing 20 of 174 questions

02

The tables behind the study

Every figure on the study page comes from these tables. They are CSV files, which open in any spreadsheet.

  • Questions

    nz-election-2026-questions.csv

    One row per question.

    Question id, report reference, question, voter, issue, towns it was also asked from, answers per assistant

  • Answers

    nz-election-2026-answers.csv

    One row per answer, with its full text.

    Answer id, question id, assistant, town, words, parties named, showed a link, websites recorded as sources, compared like for like, full text

  • Sources by answer

    nz-election-2026-sources.csv

    One row for each website recorded as a source of an answer.

    Answer id, question id, assistant, town, website, publisher type

  • Checks against official sources

    nz-election-2026-checks.csv

    One row per statement checked.

    Check, answer id, assistant, what the answer said, verdict, what the source says, source, date

  • Who to vote for: coding

    nz-election-2026-guidance.csv

    One row per answer to the eight questions that asked who to vote for.

    Answer id, question id, assistant, what the answer did, the words that show it

  • Location and national answers

    nz-election-2026-towns.csv

    One row per question asked both nationally and from a location, for each assistant.

    Question, town, assistant, both answer ids, parties named nationally and from the town, same parties

Use these tables to trace findings back to the original questions and answers. The full text of each answer is also on this page, under its question.

03

Read in full and checked

Some answers were read in detail or checked against official sources. Those appear on the study page, beside the findings they support.

ChatGPT · No location

I've recently been made redundant after years in the same industry. I have rent to pay, and I'm unsure whether to retrain or keep looking for similar work. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What do parties propose for people who cannot cover rent after losing their job?

For someone suddenly unable to cover rent, the main differences are how generous/targeted housing support should be, and how strongly benefits should push people back into work:

Current government changes also mean Accommodation Supplement maximums rise $10–$30/week from April 2027, while Temporary Additional Support becomes less generous. Changes to housing support | Work and Income

A useful neutral comparison is Policy.nz's 2026 party-policy guide.

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Gemini · No location

I've recently been made redundant after years in the same industry. I have rent to pay, and I'm unsure whether to retrain or keep looking for similar work. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What do parties propose for people who cannot cover rent after losing their job?

Facing redundancy after years in the same industry is a deeply stressful situation, especially with rent and essential living costs to manage.

For the 2026 New Zealand general election, political parties have drawn distinct lines on how to handle unemployment, income support, and the cost of renting. Broadly speaking, parties split into two main approaches: supply-side and market-driven incentives versus targeted welfare interventions, income protections, and stronger renter rights.


1. Parties Favoring Current Settings, Supply Growth, and Market Flexibility

  • National, ACT, and New Zealand First (Current Coalition / Right-Leaning Parties):
    • Retraining and Employment: These parties generally emphasize getting people back into the workforce quickly through active employment services, job-matching, and reducing regulatory barriers to business growth.
    • Housing and Rent: Rather than implementing rent controls or direct subsidies, they argue that the best way to help renters is to increase overall housing supply through Resource Management Act (RMA) reform, fast-tracked consents, and incentives for private property investment (such as restored interest deductibility for landlords).
    • Financial Support: They lean toward maintaining standard welfare safety nets (like the Jobseeker Support benefit) while tightening work obligations, preferring private market solutions over government intervention in wages or rent caps.

2. Parties Favoring Direct Intervention, Protections, and Welfare Expansion

  • Labour, the Green Party, and Te Pāti Māori (Left-Leaning / Progressive Parties):
    • Retraining and Redundancy Protection: Labour and alignment groups (such as union-backed initiatives) have pushed for structural responses to economic disruption—including calls for formalized redundancy and income protection insurance or targeted vocational retraining funds for workers affected by technological or structural changes.
    • Renter Protections and Rent Relief:
      • The Green Party is strongly campaigning on a Renters’ Rights Bill, which features a direct cap on annual rent increases (around 2%), the removal of no-cause evictions, and a mandatory rental warrant of fitness.
      • Labour supports stronger tenant rights (having previously removed no-cause evictions while in government) and has announced major infrastructure and public/social housing build commitments to ease the pressure on lower-income households.
    • Income Support: These parties generally advocate for lifting benefit levels, increasing hardship assistance to match inflation, and expanding public and social housing stock so that those who lose their jobs are less likely to face severe housing precarity.

Immediate Practical Assistance Available Now

Regardless of party policy debates, if you are currently struggling to cover rent after a redundancy, New Zealand has existing statutory support systems you can access immediately through Work and Income (MSD):

  • Jobseeker Support: A weekly benefit for people who are actively looking for work or retraining.
  • Accommodation Supplement: A weekly payment to help with rent, board, or home ownership costs, depending on your income, assets, and location.
  • Temporary Additional Support (TAS): A short-term financial help option if your standard income and benefits cannot cover your essential living costs (including rent).

Are you leaning more toward retraining in a completely new sector, or are you hoping to find a similar role in your current industry?

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Google AI Mode · No location

I've recently been made redundant after years in the same industry. I have rent to pay, and I'm unsure whether to retrain or keep looking for similar work. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What do parties propose for people who cannot cover rent after losing their job?

New Zealand political parties offer distinct approaches to supporting individuals facing redundancy and rent distress through income support, housing assistance, and retraining frameworks.

When you lose your job and struggle with rent, current baseline options include the

Ministry of Social Development (Work and Income) main benefits (such as Jobseeker Support) and the Accommodation Supplement, alongside standard training incentives via Te Pūkenga / Tertiary Education Commission. Political parties approach these safety nets through varying fiscal and structural lenses:

Major Party Approaches to Income, Rent, and Retraining

  • National Party : Focuses on broader economic management, growing jobs through private sector incentives, and maintaining standard baseline welfare safety nets alongside adjustments to the Accommodation Supplement. Their emphasis leans toward rapid re-entry into the workforce through active employment measures rather than expanding benefit levels, paired with supply-side housing policies to lower overall housing costs over time.

  • Labour Party : Favours strengthening core public safety nets, protecting renter rights, and increasing investment in worker retraining and targeted industry support. They generally support maintaining or adjusting income-tested benefits and housing support to match inflation, alongside active regional and sector transition support for displaced workers.

  • Green Party : Proposes stronger direct income support by raising main benefit levels and implementing comprehensive renter protections—such as limiting annual rent increases and introducing a Rental Warrant of Fitness. For retraining and transitions, they advocate for robust public sector backing in green industries and barrier-free access to tertiary education and vocational training.

  • New Zealand First : Emphasizes practical, targeted relief and priority for domestic workers, supporting tighter economic controls and industry-specific protection. Their focus on housing centres on supply and regional affordability plans, alongside strict criteria for welfare accessibility that prioritize moving people back into sustainable work. [greypowermag.co.nz]

  • The Opportunities Party (TOP) : Proposes structural overhauls to housing support, such as replacing the traditional Accommodation Supplement with a more universal housing payment model, which aims to directly ease rent burdens regardless of strict work-test status during career transitions. [greypowermag.co.nz]

Immediate Support Channels Available Now

Regardless of party policy debates, if you face immediate hardship:

  1. Work and Income : Check your eligibility for Jobseeker Support and the Accommodation Supplement immediately, as applications can take time to process.
  2. Temporary Additional Support : Explore if you qualify via Work and Income Temporary Additional Support to help cover essential living costs like rent if your baseline income falls short.
  3. Retraining Options : Look into Off-100% Fees Free / Targeted Training options through regional polytechnics and skills organizations to see if short courses are subsidized for career changers.
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AI Overviews · No location

I've recently been made redundant after years in the same industry. I have rent to pay, and I'm unsure whether to retrain or keep looking for similar work. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What do parties propose for people who cannot cover rent after losing their job?

AI Overview

For individuals who lose their job and cannot cover rent, New Zealand's political parties propose contrasting approaches for the 2026 general election. The debate focuses on whether to directly boost cash subsidies for private renters, restrict rental prices, or redirect funding toward expanding the public housing supply.

The Coalition Government (National and ACT)

The current National and ACT coalition approach relies on adjusting the existing welfare architecture to shift financial support toward lower-income private renters through mechanisms passed in Budget 2026.

  • Accommodation Supplement Increases: The coalition has structured a package that increases the maximum weekly Accommodation Supplement rates by $10 to $30 (depending on location and family size). This increase is funded by raising the minimum rent contribution for social housing tenants from 25% to 30% of their income.

  • Temporary Additional Support (TAS) Reductions: To ensure welfare acts strictly as temporary hardship assistance, the government is reducing the maximum payment rate of TAS from 30% to 25% of a recipient's main benefit.

  • Jobseeker Focus: The coalition emphasizes transitioning individuals back into the workforce quickly. ACT's welfare policy focuses on strict case management and expectations for jobseekers to take active steps toward work rather than relying on long-term state support.

The Opposition (Labour and Greens)

The center-left and left opposition parties oppose the government's recent changes, arguing that direct rent supplements function primarily as subsidies for private landlords.

  • Labour Party: Labour has pledged to scrap the planned social housing rent increases and reverse the associated Accommodation Supplement changes. The Labour Party argues that cash supplements ultimately fuel rising private rents. Instead, they focus on long-term rental security by proposing to build 6,000 new social houses over four years to pull people off private waitlists.

  • Green Party: The Greens propose heavy regulation of the private rental market alongside tax restructuring. They are campaigning on a Renters' Rights Bill that would cap annual rent increases at 2% and eliminate no-cause evictions to prevent displacement during sudden job loss. Furthermore, they support a $10,000 tax-free income band to provide immediate financial relief to low earners and those on baseline benefits.


If you want to weigh how these policies affect your situation, let me know:

  • Whether you are leaning toward retraining or staying in your current industry

  • If you have looked into current Jobseeker Support or hardship grants via MSD

  • What aspects of these party policies (direct cash support vs. rent controls) matter most to your decision

I can provide more detailed information on specific training incentives or transitional support options available right now.

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