---
title: "Unpaid carer juggling work and care"
publisher: "Onsomble Limited"
publication: "NZBrands.ai"
edition: 3
collected_on: "2026-10-16"
html_url: "https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/voters/s15/"
---

# Unpaid carer juggling work and care

Edition 3 · answers collected 16 October 2026.

[Read on NZBrands.ai](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/voters/s15/)

I work part time and provide unpaid care for an older family member who needs help every day. Getting reliable support is difficult.

This is a designed voter situation, not a representative sample or a finding about everyone in that group.

## What they asked

### PF078 · Retirement and aged care

I work part time and provide unpaid care for an older family member who needs help every day. Getting reliable support is difficult. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. How do parties compare on home-based care, aged care and respite services?

Study-assigned priority: Major. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Availability of home care shapes the stated care burden.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/questions/bec8b0b6-237b-4732-9533-092e706f3d2c.md)

### PF079 · Poverty and welfare

I work part time and provide unpaid care for an older family member who needs help every day. Getting reliable support is difficult. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What financial recognition or support do parties propose for unpaid family carers?

Study-assigned priority: Major. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Unpaid care reduces paid work and disposable income.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/questions/a006cfe2-0b1d-4f00-bb9a-c564d0adbd02.md)

### PF080 · Healthcare

I work part time and provide unpaid care for an older family member who needs help every day. Getting reliable support is difficult. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What do parties propose about coordinating healthcare and support for families caring for someone at home?

Study-assigned priority: Major. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Health services influence the family member's care needs.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/questions/2bade0ae-9471-4d8f-af4b-2221355ddebc.md)

### PF081 · Jobs and unemployment

I work part time and provide unpaid care for an older family member who needs help every day. Getting reliable support is difficult. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. Which parties address flexible work and leave for people with substantial caring responsibilities?

Study-assigned priority: Secondary. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Flexible employment affects continued paid work.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/questions/61520967-3119-44b0-803e-6e7b453f3f8a.md)

### PF082 · Mental health and addiction

I work part time and provide unpaid care for an older family member who needs help every day. Getting reliable support is difficult. I am considering my vote in the 2026 New Zealand general election. What do parties propose about mental health and practical support for family carers?

Study-assigned priority: Secondary. This is a design assumption, not a measured preference. Reason: Sustained caregiving can create a need for support.

[Read the captured answers (Markdown)](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/questions/78b52f52-f89f-48a7-9891-8f6e7a59f371.md)

## Which parties AI put in front of this voter

Of the 20 answers this voter received, 14 left out at least one of the six parties in Parliament. Te Pāti Māori was named least often, in 8 of 20.

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers collected |
| --- | --- | --- |
| National | 20 | 20 |
| Labour | 20 | 20 |
| Greens | 19 | 20 |
| ACT | 16 | 20 |
| NZ First | 15 | 20 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 8 | 20 |
| Opportunity | 11 | 20 |

## Issue by issue

## Retirement and aged care

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 4 | 9 | 1 | 1 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 6 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Greens | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 4 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| ACT | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 1 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| NZ First | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 2 | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 |

## Poverty and welfare

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Greens | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| ACT | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| NZ First | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 0 | 4 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 |

## Healthcare

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 4 | 9 | 0 | 1 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 11 | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| Greens | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| ACT | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 1 | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| NZ First | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 3 | 10 | 1 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |

## Jobs and unemployment

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 6 | 25 | 1 | 2 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 15 | 17 | 1 | 1 |
| Greens | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 10 | 12 | 1 | 1 |
| ACT | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 3 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| NZ First | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 1 | 4 | 25.0% | 5 | 12 | 2 | 0 |

## Mental health and addiction

| Party | Answers naming party | Answers on issue | Share | Positive claims | Neutral claims | Negative claims | Mixed claims |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 4 | 10 | 3 | 0 |
| Labour | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 13 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Greens | 4 | 4 | 100.0% | 12 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| ACT | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| NZ First | 2 | 4 | 50.0% | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Te Pāti Māori | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Opportunity | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 |

## How the assistants handled this voter’s main question

Persistent service pressures; more explicit tests for concrete commitments

All editions retain ageing in place, workforce/pay and respite as the main pressures. Edition 3 names an advisory report and explicitly asks for guaranteed respite days and funded home-support hours, but still supplies no party-specific guaranteed entitlement. ACT appears, grouped with Opportunity, while Te Pāti Māori is absent as in Edition 2.

Gemini · 12 October 2026 · Earlier answer

> Balancing part-time work with daily, unpaid caregiving is a significant load, and finding reliable home-based support, aged care, and respite services is a widespread challenge across New Zealand.

[Full captured answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/2/questions/bec8b0b6-237b-4732-9533-092e706f3d2c/#answer-ea82504b-15b5-4a70-9fb8-fd62afdd07d6)

Gemini · 16 October 2026 · Refreshed answer

> **Guaranteed Respite Days:**

[Full captured answer](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/questions/bec8b0b6-237b-4732-9533-092e706f3d2c/#answer-c4bf0407-85d8-4bad-b08c-f787160c68c7)

## Sources recorded against the answers

## ChatGPT

| Answers collected | Answers with sources recorded | Answers showing a link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 5 | 5 | 5 |

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| national.org.nz | 5 |
| greens.org.nz | 4 |
| labour.org.nz | 4 |
| reuters.com | 4 |
| disabilitysupport.govt.nz | 3 |
| msd.govt.nz | 3 |
| opportunity.org.nz | 3 |
| act.org.nz | 2 |
| beehive.govt.nz | 2 |
| healthnz.govt.nz | 2 |

Publisher counts sum recorded website/answer associations; one answer can contribute to several websites and publisher types.

| Publisher type | Recorded associations |
| --- | --- |
| Party websites | 20 |
| Government | 11 |
| News | 5 |
| Comparison sites | 4 |
| Advocacy groups | 2 |
| Businesses | 0 |
| Social media | 0 |
| Other | 0 |

## Gemini

| Answers collected | Answers with sources recorded | Answers showing a link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 5 | 4 | 0 |

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| apex.org.nz | 2 |
| labour.org.nz | 2 |
| carers.net.nz | 1 |
| ccsdisabilityaction.org.nz | 1 |
| drnz.co.nz | 1 |
| greypowermag.co.nz | 1 |
| health.govt.nz | 1 |
| inclusiveworld.org.nz | 1 |
| lifetimeincome.co.nz | 1 |
| national.org.nz | 1 |

Publisher counts sum recorded website/answer associations; one answer can contribute to several websites and publisher types.

| Publisher type | Recorded associations |
| --- | --- |
| Party websites | 4 |
| Government | 1 |
| News | 0 |
| Comparison sites | 0 |
| Advocacy groups | 6 |
| Businesses | 3 |
| Social media | 0 |
| Other | 2 |

## Google AI Mode

| Answers collected | Answers with sources recorded | Answers showing a link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 5 | 5 | 1 |

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| inclusiveworld.org.nz | 3 |
| apex.org.nz | 2 |
| labour.org.nz | 2 |
| policy.nz | 2 |
| alzheimers.org.nz | 1 |
| anzasw.nz | 1 |
| facebook.com | 1 |
| greens.org.nz | 1 |
| greypowermag.co.nz | 1 |
| health.govt.nz | 1 |

Publisher counts sum recorded website/answer associations; one answer can contribute to several websites and publisher types.

| Publisher type | Recorded associations |
| --- | --- |
| Party websites | 4 |
| Government | 1 |
| News | 2 |
| Comparison sites | 2 |
| Advocacy groups | 8 |
| Businesses | 0 |
| Social media | 1 |
| Other | 1 |

## Google AI Overviews

| Answers collected | Answers with sources recorded | Answers showing a link |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 5 | 5 | 0 |

| Website | Answers with this website recorded |
| --- | --- |
| national.org.nz | 4 |
| rnz.co.nz | 4 |
| facebook.com | 3 |
| healthnz.govt.nz | 3 |
| labour.org.nz | 3 |
| greens.org.nz | 2 |
| greypowermag.co.nz | 2 |
| inclusiveworld.org.nz | 2 |
| mycare.co.nz | 2 |
| anzasw.nz | 1 |

Publisher counts sum recorded website/answer associations; one answer can contribute to several websites and publisher types.

| Publisher type | Recorded associations |
| --- | --- |
| Party websites | 9 |
| Government | 8 |
| News | 6 |
| Comparison sites | 1 |
| Advocacy groups | 10 |
| Businesses | 1 |
| Social media | 5 |
| Other | 5 |

## What this can and cannot tell you

Three sets of answers, from made-up voters, on three days.

Each question was asked once per edition. AI assistants vary their answers, so part of any change between editions is that variation rather than a lasting shift. Three editions show what changed; they do not show why. News events, what the assistants retrieved and changes to the assistants themselves all remain possible explanations.

The voters are designed situations, not a sample of New Zealanders. The study shows what the assistants said and lets anyone check it. It does not show whether anyone changed their vote.

We read all 31 voting-guidance answers and each voter's main question in full, and checked 12 statements. We have not read all 793 answers in full or checked every policy claim.

[Read the complete methodology](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/3/method.md)

## Publication and corrections

Published and funded by Onsomble Limited. NZBrands.ai takes no view on any party or policy.

[Independence](https://nzbrands.ai/about/independence/) · [Corrections](https://nzbrands.ai/about/corrections/) · [Contact](https://nzbrands.ai/about/contact/)