ACT leader David Seymour has urged voters to party vote ACT but give their electorate vote to National’s Blair Cameron in Nelson, backing the split-vote approach advocated by many right-wing commentators including former Reserve Bank Governor and National Party Leader Don Brash. Cameron lost to Labour’s Rachel Boyack by just 26 votes in 2023.
Seymour said ACT supporters should back his policies with their party vote, but use their electorate vote for the local MP they wanted to represent them. He said ACT’s candidate Chris Baillie wasn’t seeking the electorate vote, and Baillie had described Cameron as a good candidate.
Seymour also said the Upper South Island was facing “real problems” with its health system, that patients were being turned away from emergency departments and waiting lists were long.
NZ First has taken a different approach to healthcare. Its Keep NZ Healthy policy aims to shift the focus from treating illness to preventing it.
National’s Chris Bishop has also faced questions about split voting in Hutt South, where he is fighting to retain his seat. In an interview, he resisted endorsing the strategy but said voters should give their electorate votes to National candidates.
An overhang can occur when a party wins more electorate seats than its share of the party vote would normally entitle it to.
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