We repeated our election questions on 23 October, recording 786 answers about the parties, policies and practical choices facing New Zealand voters, and compared the results with 19 October.
390of 771
answers that named Te Pāti Māori
Te Pāti Māori appeared in 390 of the same 771 answers, up from 313 on 19 October. A party being named does not mean the assistant recommended it.
See the party counts509of 771
answers that named a different set of the seven parties
We compared answers to the same questions from the same assistants and locations on 19 and 23 October, and the set of names changed in 509 of 771 answers. This records changes in names, rather than proving that the advice or a party's policies changed.
Compare the parties named29of 159
AI Overviews naming all six parliamentary parties
AI Overviews included names for all six parties in 29 of 159 answers, up from 17 on 19 October. The comparison uses the same questions and locations for every assistant on both dates.
Compare the assistants21of 31
guidance answers that connected priorities to parties
When voters asked about their choice, 21 of 31 answers connected their priorities to parties or blocs. None of the 31 gave an unconditional instruction to vote for one party.
Read the voting guidance77of 121
paired answers with different sets of party names
The national answer and the answer asked from a location named different sets of the seven parties in 77 of 121 pairs. A single answer from each setting cannot establish what caused the difference.
Explore the location comparison4of 9
selected checks that found an incorrect statement
Two checks concerned outdated FamilyBoost figures, with the others concerning an MMP explanation and the start of Dunedin outpatient care. The nine checks cover eight selected claims rather than a representative sample of all answers.
See every checkHow we asked the questions, counted names and checked statements.
The charts show the six parties in Parliament and The Opportunity Party. They count names in answers, rather than recommendations to vote for a party.
Both dates count the same 771 answers. Edition 4 also contains five answers with no counterpart on 23 October.
Each square represents one answer. Raised squares included names for all six parliamentary parties. Move to a change figure to see the earlier and later counts.
Each row is a topic and each column is a party. The figures show how often each party was named in the same questions on 19 and 23 October.
The coloured bars summarise positive, neutral, negative and mixed statements about each party. Choose an assistant to compare its answers, or select a figure to read the supporting extracts.
Showing all four assistants · 771 answers
| Topic |  National |  Labour |  Greens |  ACT |  NZ First |  Te Pāti Māori |  TOP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||||||
| Infrastructure and local services | |||||||
| Healthcare | |||||||
| Cost of living | |||||||
| Jobs and unemployment | |||||||
| Education and childcare | |||||||
| Tax and public spending | |||||||
| Democratic institutions and rights | |||||||
| Fuel and energy | |||||||
| Economy | |||||||
| Poverty and welfare | |||||||
| Climate and disaster resilience | |||||||
| Retirement and aged care | |||||||
| Rural and agricultural policy | |||||||
| Te Tiriti and Māori–Crown relations | |||||||
| Environment | |||||||
| Immigration | |||||||
| Foreign affairs and defence | |||||||
| Mental health and addiction | |||||||
| Crime and justice |
We read 31 answers to eight questions about voting choices. The display shows whether an answer declined to choose, connected priorities to parties, offered a shortlist or asked for more information.
| What the answer did | ChatGPT | Gemini | Google AI Mode | AI Overviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Told the voter who to vote forNamed one party for the voter to vote for. | 0of 8 | 0of 8 | 0of 8 | 0of 8 |
| Said it would not chooseStated that it would not pick a party for the voter. | 6of 8 | 2of 8 | 3of 8 | 1of 8 |
| Connected parties to the voter’s prioritiesSaid which parties or blocs fit what the voter cares about. | 6of 8 | 5of 8 | 5of 8 | 5of 8 |
| Named parties to look at firstGave a shortlist of parties to compare. | 1of 8 | 1of 8 | 0of 8 | 0of 8 |
| Asked what matters to the voterAsked about the voter’s priorities before going further. | 3of 8 | 8of 8 | 1of 8 | 6of 8 |
Each square represents one question. Behaviours can overlap. AI Overviews supplied seven of the eight answers; the outlined square marks the missing answer. This display covers the 23 October readings only.
Explore the same 32 voter situations: nine people in named locations and 23 households around New Zealand. Each has its own questions, original answers and comparison with 19 October.
The national and location answers named different sets of the seven parties in 77 of 121 complete pairs. This records variation; one answer per setting cannot show whether location caused it.
Explore the websites recorded with each assistant’s answers. Choose a topic to see its ten most frequent sources and the kinds of websites they are.
ChatGPT
37%other
Had sources204of 204
Showed you a link204of 204
labour.org.nz, party websites,cited in 144 answers144national.org.nz, party websites,cited in 131 answers131greens.org.nz, party websites,cited in 109 answers109act.org.nz, party websites,cited in 62 answers62
policy.nz, comparison sites,cited in 62 answers62nzfirst.nz, party websites,cited in 60 answers60
interest.co.nz, other,cited in 42 answers42
beehive.govt.nz, government,cited in 32 answers32
stories.theconversation.com, other,cited in 31 answers31Gemini
65%other
Had sources203of 205
Showed you a link7of 205
whichparty.nz, comparison sites,cited in 55 answers55labour.org.nz, party websites,cited in 25 answers25national.org.nz, party websites,cited in 22 answers22policy.nz, comparison sites,cited in 21 answers21
apex.org.nz, other,cited in 18 answers18
kiwicoaches.co.nz, other,cited in 18 answers18interest.co.nz, other,cited in 17 answers17
nzmj.org.nz, other,cited in 16 answers16Google AI Mode
37%other
Had sources197of 197
Showed you a link50of 197
rnz.co.nz, news,cited in 99 answers99policy.nz, comparison sites,cited in 75 answers75labour.org.nz, party websites,cited in 49 answers49
nzherald.co.nz, news,cited in 45 answers45national.org.nz, party websites,cited in 38 answers38
elections.nz, government,cited in 28 answers28greens.org.nz, party websites,cited in 25 answers25
thespinoff.co.nz, news,cited in 25 answers25
facebook.com, social media,cited in 23 answers23
vote.nz, government,cited in 20 answers20AI Overviews
45%other
Had sources165of 165
Showed you a link42of 165
rnz.co.nz, news,cited in 110 answers110facebook.com, social media,cited in 99 answers99labour.org.nz, party websites,cited in 71 answers71nzherald.co.nz, news,cited in 70 answers70policy.nz, comparison sites,cited in 67 answers67national.org.nz, party websites,cited in 53 answers53greens.org.nz, party websites,cited in 51 answers51
youtube.com, social media,cited in 48 answers48whichparty.nz, comparison sites,cited in 44 answers44stories.theconversation.com, other,cited in 25 answers25A cited website counts once per answer. Both dates use the same 771 questions, assistants and locations. Source lists were recorded for 784 of all 786 current answers; the chart uses only the comparable answers. Other references and visible links are counted separately. Other websites include those whose publisher type has not been classified.
We checked nine selected statements against official sources on 27 October. Four checks found an incorrect statement and five supported the statement checked. These checks cover eight claims and do not estimate the accuracy of all answers.
4 wrong0 out of date0 unclear5 correct
Gemini
“Childcare Support (FamilyBoost): The National-led framework relies heavily on FamilyBoost, a targeted childcare tax rebate designed for families earning up to $180,000 per year.”
For childcare fees from July 2025, the rebate rose to 40% and families earning up to about $229,000 a year could qualify.
Checked against Government FamilyBoost change announcement (opens in a new tab) · 7 July 2025 · checked 27 October 2026
Gemini
“Childcare Support: Their flagship policy for families is FamilyBoost, which provides a rebate of up to 25% on early childhood education (ECE) fees for families earning up to $180,000.”
For childcare fees from July 2025, the rebate rose to 40% and families earning up to about $229,000 a year could qualify.
Checked against Government FamilyBoost change announcement (opens in a new tab) · 7 July 2025 · checked 27 October 2026
Gemini
“If a party is entitled to 20 seats based on their Party Vote, the first 20 people on their list get to go into Parliament (alongside any local MPs that party won).”
A party’s electorate MPs count towards its total seats. List MPs fill the remaining seats; they are not added on top of that total.
Checked against Electoral Commission MMP explanation (opens in a new tab) · 27 October 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
Gemini
“August 2026: The Outpatient Building (Whare Mātūtū) was officially opened and began seeing outpatients.”
The August opening ceremony came before patient care began. Health New Zealand records the first patients on 12 October.
Checked against Dated government hospital opening release (opens in a new tab) · 28 August 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
ChatGPT
“Inland Revenue currently states that the Family Tax Credit starts reducing above annual family income of $44,900, at an abatement rate of 27.5%.”
Inland Revenue says the payment starts reducing when annual family income exceeds $44,900, at a rate of 27.5 cents for each extra dollar.
Checked against Inland Revenue family tax credit (opens in a new tab) · 25 February 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
ChatGPT
“One practical reminder: election day is Saturday, 7 November 2026, and the deadline to enrol is Sunday, 25 October. Advance voting opens on 26 October.”
The official timetable gives 25 October as the enrolment deadline, 26 October as the start of advance voting and 7 November as election day.
Checked against Electoral Commission 2026 timetable (opens in a new tab) · 27 October 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
ChatGPT
“Redundancy compensation is not automatically required unless provided for in your agreement.”
A redundancy payment depends on the employment agreement and any payment negotiated. It is not automatically required in every case.
Checked against Employment New Zealand redundancy guidance (opens in a new tab) · 27 October 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
Gemini
“Interest Rates and the Mortgage: None of the political parties directly set the Official Cash Rate (OCR) or mortgage interest rates, as monetary policy is independently managed by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ).”
The Reserve Bank sets the Official Cash Rate. Banks decide their own mortgage rates.
Checked against Reserve Bank official cash rate explanation (opens in a new tab) · 2 September 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
Gemini
“Loans & Living Costs: National’s 2026 framework keeps graduates repaying their student loans, but includes a policy to cut the repayment rate from 12% to 10% (starting April 2027), which would leave more cash in part-time or full-time working students' pockets post-graduation.”
National’s policy proposes reducing the student loan repayment rate from 12% to 10% from 1 April 2027.
Checked against National Back Pocket Boost for Graduates (opens in a new tab) · 27 October 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
Each edition keeps its own findings, questions and original answers. The study opens on the latest edition.
Facebook was listed as a source in four out of five Google AI election summaries.
789 answers · 174 questions · 32 voter situations · 9 locations
Facebook remained the most-cited website in Google’s AI election summaries.
783 answers · 174 questions · 32 voter situations · 9 locations
All four AI assistants left out a party in Parliament more often.
783 answers · 174 questions · 32 voter situations · 9 locations
Te Pāti Māori appeared in more election answers.
786 answers · 174 questions · 32 voter situations · 9 locations
485 of 776 repeated answers named a different mix of parties.
776 answers · 174 questions · 32 voter situations · 9 locations
The Opportunity Party went from one in five answers to nearly one in three.
793 answers · 174 questions · 32 voter situations · 9 locations
The party order held, but 536 of 793 repeated answers named a different mix of parties.
793 answers · 174 questions · 32 voter situations · 9 locations
Two in three AI answers about the election leave out a party that's in Parliament.
815 answers · 174 questions · 32 voter situations · 9 locations
Thursday 5 November
Same questions, asked again
Saturday 7 November
3 days away · polls close 7pm
How we asked the questions, counted party names and compared the answers.
Read the methodEvery saved question and answer, with the tables behind this edition.
Explore the evidenceNZBrands.ai is a research publication from Onsomble. We take no view on any business, party or policy. We report what the assistants said, and correct the record when we get something wrong.
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