We asked four AI assistants about the parties, policies and everyday concerns facing New Zealand voters. Then we asked again to see what changed.
146of 166
AI Overviews that left out at least one parliamentary party
AI Overviews left out at least one of the six parliamentary parties in 146 of 166 comparable answers, up from 136. The other three assistants also left parties out more often.
Compare the assistants477of 780
answers that named a different set of the seven parties
Of the 780 answers available on both dates, 477 named a different set of the seven displayed parties. The questions were asked on 23 October and again on 26 October 2026.
Compare the parties named361of 780
answers that named Te Pāti Māori
Te Pāti Māori was named in 361 of the 780 answers, down from 391 on 23 October. The count records whether a party was named in an answer.
See the party counts23of 31
guidance answers that connected priorities to parties
In 23 of the 31 guidance answers, the assistant linked parties or political blocs to what mattered to the voter. None of the 31 answers made an unconditional choice of one party.
Read the voting guidance77of 118
national-and-regional answer pairs with different party names
In 77 of 118 national-and-regional answer pairs, the seven displayed party names differed. Explore the nine regional situations to read the questions and answers.
Explore the regional answers3of 5
selected statements checked that were incorrect
Three of the five selected statements present in these answers were incorrect when checked against primary sources. We revisited 11 selected checks, and six earlier assertions were not repeated in the new answers.
See the checksHow 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.
Answers available on both dates: 780 per date.
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.
See which parties came up in answers about housing, healthcare and other election issues, and what changed since the previous edition.
The coloured bars show whether comments about a party were positive, neutral, negative or mixed. Pick an AI assistant to see its results, or click a number to read what it said.
Showing all four assistants · 780 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 | |||||||
| Environment | |||||||
| Immigration | |||||||
| Te Tiriti and Māori–Crown relations | |||||||
| 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 7 |
| Said it would not chooseStated that it would not pick a party for the voter. | 3of 8 | 2of 8 | 3of 8 | 1of 7 |
| Connected parties to the voter’s prioritiesSaid which parties or blocs fit what the voter cares about. | 6of 8 | 6of 8 | 5of 8 | 6of 7 |
| Named parties to look at firstGave a shortlist of parties to compare. | 3of 8 | 0of 8 | 0of 8 | 1of 7 |
| Asked what matters to the voterAsked about the voter’s priorities before going further. | 6of 8 | 7of 8 | 2of 8 | 7of 7 |
Each square represents one question. Behaviours can overlap. AI Overviews supplied seven of the eight answers; the outlined square marks the missing answer. The same 31 answers were reviewed on each date.
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 23 October.
The national and location answers named different sets of the seven parties in 77 of 118 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
41%other
Had sources202of 202
Showed you a link201of 202
national.org.nz, party websites,cited in 142 answers142labour.org.nz, party websites,cited in 134 answers134greens.org.nz, party websites,cited in 113 answers113act.org.nz, party websites,cited in 61 answers61
policy.nz, comparison sites,cited in 61 answers61
stories.theconversation.com, other,cited in 59 answers59nzfirst.nz, party websites,cited in 57 answers57
interest.co.nz, other,cited in 40 answers40
beehive.govt.nz, government,cited in 28 answers28Gemini
62%other
Had sources202of 205
Showed you a link5of 205
whichparty.nz, comparison sites,cited in 55 answers55national.org.nz, party websites,cited in 31 answers31policy.nz, comparison sites,cited in 30 answers30labour.org.nz, party websites,cited in 25 answers25interest.co.nz, other,cited in 19 answers19
kiwicoaches.co.nz, other,cited in 19 answers19
apex.org.nz, other,cited in 17 answers17
nzmj.org.nz, other,cited in 16 answers16Google AI Mode
43%other
Had sources205of 205
Showed you a link48of 205
rnz.co.nz, news,cited in 81 answers81policy.nz, comparison sites,cited in 78 answers78
nzherald.co.nz, news,cited in 55 answers55labour.org.nz, party websites,cited in 42 answers42national.org.nz, party websites,cited in 30 answers30
facebook.com, social media,cited in 28 answers28greens.org.nz, party websites,cited in 25 answers25stories.theconversation.com, other,cited in 25 answers25
elections.nz, government,cited in 21 answers21AI Overviews
43%other
Had sources168of 168
Showed you a link45of 168
facebook.com, social media,cited in 121 answers121rnz.co.nz, news,cited in 109 answers109national.org.nz, party websites,cited in 72 answers72labour.org.nz, party websites,cited in 70 answers70greens.org.nz, party websites,cited in 66 answers66nzherald.co.nz, news,cited in 64 answers64policy.nz, comparison sites,cited in 58 answers58
youtube.com, social media,cited in 53 answers53stories.theconversation.com, other,cited in 52 answers52whichparty.nz, comparison sites,cited in 39 answers39A cited website counts once per answer. Both dates compare 780 answers to the same questions, from the same assistants and locations. 777 of 780 answers included citations on 26 October, compared with 778 on 23 October. Links shown in the answer are counted separately. Other includes websites we have not yet classified.
We revisited 11 selected checks against primary sources on 27 October. Five assertions were stated in these answers: three were incorrect and two were supported. The other six assertions were not repeated. These selected checks do not estimate the accuracy of all answers.
3 wrong0 out of date0 unclear2 correct
Gemini
“Fees & Support: National relies heavily on the FamilyBoost tax rebate, which provides eligible families (earning up to $180,000 per year) a partial rebate on ECE fees.”
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
“(Note: Regardless of political debate, the transition rules introduced previously continue to apply regarding residency: anyone turning 65 faces a residency requirement of living in NZ for 20 years since age 20, up from the historical 10 years.)*”
The residence requirement rises from 10 to 20 years according to a person’s date of birth. It is not already 20 years for everyone turning 65.
Checked against Work and Income residence transition table (opens in a new tab) · 2 July 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
Gemini
“Inpatient Building Completion: Expected completion is slated for around December 2030, at which point the final major transfer of acute services, emergency medicine, and inpatient wards will take place.”
The government distinguishes completing construction in late 2030 from receiving patients in 2031.
Checked against Dated government inpatient construction update (opens in a new tab) · 15 July 2026 · checked 27 October 2026
ChatGPT
“One timely detail: advance voting starts 26 October 2026, and election day is Saturday, 7 November 2026. The Electoral Commission says the enrolment deadline was 25 October, so if you haven't enrolled, check its official guidance immediately to establish your options.”
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
Gemini
“Under its campaign commitments, National plans to lower the mandatory student loan repayment rate from 12% to 10% (starting April 2027).”
National proposes reducing domestic student-loan repayments 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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