2026 New Zealand general election: Democracy, accountability and political misinformation

The main difference between New Zealand's political parties is how they understand who should hold power, how governments should be scrutinised, and where to draw the line between protecting people from harmful information and protecting freedom of expression.

For the 2026 general election, three issues are particularly important:

1. Government accountability: transparency, lobbying, political donations, access to government information and parliamentary scrutiny.
2. Democratic rights: voting rights, freedom of expression, equality before the law, Treaty rights and public participation.
3. Political misinformation: how to address disinformation, AI-generated deepfakes, misleading political advertising and the influence of social media platforms.

The comparison below focuses on the main parliamentary parties, as well as The Opportunities Party (TOP). It reflects policies and public positions available during the 2026 election campaign, rather than assuming that every proposal has been implemented.

1. Government accountability

This concerns how effectively citizens can scrutinise government decisions and hold politicians and public institutions responsible.

Party	Main approach
National	Emphasises ministerial responsibility, parliamentary accountability, public-sector performance and transparency. Its position places considerable emphasis on existing accountability institutions and the government's record.
Labour	Proposes modernising the Official Information Act, establishing a public lobbying register and limiting the use of urgency to pass legislation without proper scrutiny.
Greens	Advocate stronger transparency around political donations and lobbying, greater public participation and measures to reduce corporate influence over political decisions.
ACT	Emphasises parliamentary sovereignty, individual rights, limited government and public accountability.
New Zealand First	Emphasises national sovereignty, citizen participation, accountability and protection against foreign and corporate influence.
Te Pāti Māori	Emphasises accountability through Te Tiriti o Waitangi, Māori self-determination and stronger Māori participation in decision-making.
TOP	Proposes substantial institutional reforms, including an independent anti-corruption body, lobbying regulation, stronger whistleblower protections and improved access to official information.

Some important differences:

• Labour has made specific commitments to restore election-day enrolment, modernise the OIA and restrict rushed legislation. A Government You Can Trust
• The Greens want tighter controls on political donations and lobbying, alongside broader electoral reform. Manifesto 2026Election 2026: Political parties’ positions on lobbying, political donations and other pro-democracy policies
• TOP proposes a particularly broad package of institutional accountability reforms, including an independent anti-corruption body and citizens' assemblies. Democracy Manifest - How each party is approaching democracy this electionElection policy tracker: what the parties are promising
• National and ACT place greater emphasis on parliamentary responsibility, institutional performance and the role of elected representatives.

2. Democratic rights and freedoms

The parties differ over who should be able to participate in elections, how constitutional arrangements should work, and how individual and collective rights should be protected.

Party	Main democratic-rights positions
National	Supports parliamentary democracy, equality before the law and independent courts. Supports retaining the voting age at 18 and reinstating the prisoner voting ban.
Labour	Supports restoring election-day voter enrolment and strengthening public participation in lawmaking. Supports voting rights for 16- and 17-year-olds in local elections, but not necessarily general elections.
Greens	Propose lowering the voting age to 16, restoring voting rights for prisoners, strengthening Māori electoral representation and making MMP more proportional.
ACT	Emphasises individual liberties, equal citizenship, freedom of expression and parliamentary sovereignty. Opposes race-based distinctions in public institutions and Treaty-based co-governance arrangements.
New Zealand First	Emphasises national sovereignty, equal treatment before the law, binding referenda on major constitutional changes and a review of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act.
Te Pāti Māori	Advocates tino rangatiratanga, stronger Māori political authority, Te Tiriti-based constitutional change and greater recognition of Māori rights.
TOP	Supports electoral reform, stronger public participation and citizens' assemblies to give ordinary citizens a greater role in major policy decisions.

NZLS | 4. What policies does your party have to strengthen and uphold the rule of law, including throughout the legislative process?Election 2026: Political parties’ positions on lobbying, political donations and other pro-democracy policiesDemocracy Manifest - How each party is approaching democracy this electionElection policy tracker: what the parties are promising

Key areas of disagreement

A. Voting rights

• The Greens propose voting rights from age 16 in general elections.
• Labour proposes voting rights for 16- and 17-year-olds in local elections.
• National maintains the general voting age of 18.
• The Greens also want to restore voting rights for all prisoners.

B. The Treaty of Waitangi and constitutional arrangements

This is one of the most significant philosophical differences.

• ACT and New Zealand First emphasise equal citizenship, parliamentary sovereignty and opposition to race-based political arrangements.
• The Greens and Te Pāti Māori emphasise Te Tiriti o Waitangi as a foundation for constitutional arrangements and Māori political authority.
• Labour supports Te Tiriti obligations but has a different approach to constitutional reform from the Greens and Te Pāti Māori.

C. Parliamentary scrutiny and public participation

• Labour emphasises proper select committee scrutiny and limits on urgent legislation.
• The Greens support more extensive public participation and electoral reform.
• TOP proposes citizens' assemblies, where randomly selected citizens consider major national issues and make recommendations to Parliament.

These are different interpretations of democratic representation: whether democracy should primarily operate through elected representatives, stronger individual voting rights, Treaty-based representation, or additional forms of direct citizen participation.

3. Responses to political misinformation

This is an increasingly important issue because political misinformation can affect elections, public trust, political debate and confidence in democratic institutions.

It is useful to distinguish three related problems:

• Misinformation: false or inaccurate information, whether deliberately shared or not.
• Disinformation: deliberately deceptive information intended to mislead.
• Political manipulation: the deliberate use of misleading content, fake accounts, bots, manipulated media or AI-generated material to influence public opinion.

The parties' policies do not all address misinformation directly. Much of the disagreement concerns regulation of digital platforms, media standards, freedom of expression and the responsibilities of technology companies.

Party	Approach to misinformation and digital media
National	Proposes restrictions on under-16s accessing high-risk social media platforms, with enforcement responsibilities for platforms. Supports replacing the Broadcasting Standards Authority with an industry self-regulatory approach.
Labour	Proposes an under-16 social media restriction, a Digital Duty of Care for online platforms, stronger protections for young people and modernised media regulation.
Greens	Oppose a blanket under-16 social media ban. Prefer stronger platform accountability, privacy protections and regulation of harmful online content.
ACT	Opposes the proposed under-16 social media ban. Emphasises freedom of expression and a more limited regulatory approach. Supports restrictions on non-consensual explicit deepfakes.
New Zealand First	Opposes the proposed under-16 social media ban and emphasises national sovereignty and safeguards around technology. Supports abolishing the Broadcasting Standards Authority.
Te Pāti Māori	Emphasises Māori media, cultural sovereignty and Māori control over information and data.
TOP	Supports modernising media standards and extending protections to online media, with an emphasis on accountability and informed public debate.

Who will give us better public media?Election 2026: The parties have AI plans. Where are the pressure points?

Three important policy differences

1. Should social media platforms be regulated more strongly?

Labour and the Greens support stronger platform responsibilities, although they differ on age restrictions and their regulatory approaches.

National and Labour both propose restrictions on under-16s accessing social media.

ACT, New Zealand First and the Greens oppose a blanket ban, although their reasons and alternative approaches differ. Who will give us better public media?

2. Should traditional media regulation extend to online media?

• National proposes abolishing the Broadcasting Standards Authority and moving towards industry self-regulation.
• ACT and New Zealand First also support abolishing the authority.
• Labour, the Greens and TOP support modernising media regulation and extending protections to online media.

This raises an important democratic question: how should society ensure accuracy and accountability in public communications without giving regulators excessive control over freedom of expression? Who will give us better public media?

3. What about AI-generated misinformation and deepfakes?

AI makes it easier to create convincing fake images, videos, audio recordings and political statements.

The parties have different emphases:

• ACT has addressed non-consensual explicit deepfakes.
• Labour has emphasised human accountability for public-service decisions involving AI.
• The Greens emphasise privacy, data protection and accountability for digital platforms.
• National has focused on AI development and technology-sector growth.

These positions do not amount to a comprehensive, shared policy framework for preventing AI-generated political misinformation. Election 2026: The parties have AI plans. Where are the pressure points?

4. The biggest differences at a glance

The following table summarises the broad policy directions, rather than ranking parties.

Issue	Parties with prominent proposals
Stronger Official Information Act	Labour, TOP
Independent anti-corruption body	TOP
Public lobbying register	Labour, Greens, TOP
Tighter political donation limits	Greens, TOP; NZ First supports the idea
Voting age of 16 in general elections	Greens
Restore prisoner voting rights	Greens
Citizens' assemblies	TOP
Treaty-based constitutional transformation	Greens, Te Pāti Māori
Binding referenda on constitutional changes	NZ First
Social media age restrictions	National, Labour
Stronger online platform regulation	Labour, Greens
Replace or abolish Broadcasting Standards Authority	National, ACT, NZ First
Restrictions on non-consensual explicit deepfakes	ACT

Democracy Manifest - How each party is approaching democracy this electionA Government You Can TrustElection 2026: Political parties’ positions on lobbying, political donations and other pro-democracy policiesWho will give us better public media?NZLS | 4. What policies does your party have to strengthen and uphold the rule of law, including throughout the legislative process?Election 2026: The parties have AI plans. Where are the pressure points?

5. Important background: changes to New Zealand's democratic rules

The election is also taking place against the backdrop of changes to electoral legislation.

The Electoral Amendment Act 2025 changed several rules, including:

• Ending voter enrolment shortly before election day.
• Reinstating the ban on prisoners voting.
• Changing political donation disclosure thresholds.
• Introducing restrictions on distributing food and most beverages near polling places.

Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori have criticised aspects of these changes, arguing that they make participation more difficult for some voters. Supporters of electoral-law changes have emphasised electoral integrity and clear, enforceable rules.

These disagreements illustrate that accountability and democratic rights are not just theoretical issues: they affect how people actually participate in elections. Democracy Manifest - How each party is approaching democracy this electionNZLS | 4. What policies does your party have to strengthen and uphold the rule of law, including throughout the legislative process?

6. Sources for further investigation

These are useful resources for checking the parties' actual commitments rather than relying solely on campaign statements.

• The Conversation – 2026 Election Policy Tracker: compares policies across seven parties.
• Trust Democracy NZ – Democracy Manifest: focuses on electoral and institutional reforms.
• Public Health Communication Centre – Party positions on lobbying and political donations: compares parties' responses to specific accountability questions.
• Better Public Media – 2026 Election Media Policy Guide: examines social media, media regulation and public broadcasting.
• New Zealand Law Society – Election 2026 and the rule of law: compares parties' positions on constitutional rights and legislative scrutiny.

7. Overall perspective: questions voters may want to consider

Rather than treating accountability, rights and misinformation as one issue, it is useful to consider the underlying democratic values separately.

1. Government accountability: Should the priority be stronger independent oversight, greater transparency, parliamentary scrutiny or direct public participation?

2. Democratic rights: Should democratic reform focus on individual voting rights and equal citizenship, Treaty-based constitutional arrangements, or both?

3. Freedom of expression: How much responsibility should governments place on social media companies and media regulators to address misleading information?

4. Political misinformation: Should the response concentrate on regulating platforms, improving media literacy, increasing transparency around political advertising, or creating stronger legal protections against deliberate deception?

5. Checks and balances: How much power should be held by Parliament, independent regulators, courts and the public?

One important distinction: Protecting people from misinformation is not necessarily the same as giving government the power to decide which political opinions are acceptable. A democratic approach needs to consider both information integrity and freedom of expression.

Ultimately, the central choice is about what kind of democratic safeguards New Zealanders want: stronger institutional oversight, greater individual and collective political rights, more direct citizen participation, or a different balance between these principles.