National MP Judith Collins has surpassed her leader Simon Bridges in the preferred Prime Minister stakes for the first time, while Winston Peters sits beside him in the latest 1 NEWS Colmar Brunton Poll.
- Jacinda Ardern: 45% (Down 6%)
- Judith Collins: 6% (Up 1%)
- Simon Bridges: 5% (Steady)
- Winston Peters: 5% (Steady)
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern saw a 6% drop down to 45% as preferred Prime Minister, after climbing to her highest ever rating of 51% during the last 1 NEWS Colmar Brunton Poll in April.
It comes after there no 'Budget bounce' for the Government, with the Budget leak saga proving a distraction.
"Polls move around," Ms Ardern said. "There is ultimately a lot of volatility but I base a lot of my judgment on what I hear from the public, I hear only overwhelming support."
National MP Judith Collins has crept past her party leader Simon Bridges, after being neck-and-neck with him during polls in April (both on 5%) and February (both on 6%).
In the latest poll, 6% of those polled wanted Ms Collins as Prime Minister, while Mr Bridges was steady on 5%. Right next to him sat deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters on 5% as preferred Prime Minister. It is the NZ First leader's highest rating since August, 2018.
Mr Bridges said it was "great [National] has a strong team".
"What New Zealanders are seeing is a much stronger team in National."
National MP Mark Mitchell also made an appearance as preferred Prime Minister, scraping 1% together.
Party vote
The parties still sit close, however - National Party on 44%, rising 4% since 1 NEWS' last poll in April. Labour dropping by a significant 6%, down to 42%.
- National Party: 44% - (Up 4%)
- Labour Party : 42% (Down 6%)
- Green Party: 6% - (Steady)
- New Zealand First: 5% - (Up 1%-point)
- ACT: 1% - (Steady)
The Green Party was steady on 6% and New Zealand First was back in the ring, receiving a bump of 0.7% up to 5% - it is the first time the party's Colmar Brunton poll results has met Parliament's 5% threshold since October, 2018. ACT remained steady on 0.7%.
Those polled were asked which political party they would vote for.
Economic outlook
- Pessimism - 38% (Up 2%)
- Optimism - 34% (Down 3%)
A pessimistic outlook of New Zealand's economy over the next 12 months has risen, with 38% of those polled answering they thought the economy would be in a worse state than at present.
Thirty-four per cent thought it would be better, and 28% thought it would remain the same.
Between June 4 and 8, 1002 eligible voters were polled via landline and mobile phone. The maximum sampling error is approximately ±3.1%-points at the 95% confidence level.
