I was considering voting for ACT at the election. Maybe I still will, but I have to admit, David Seymour’s recent antics have made me think twice. The election is now only a few weeks away. If voting mirrors the current polling in any way, we should have a National-ACT government next month. It cannot come soon enough.
The current polls indicate that National and ACT may need NZ First to form a government. There are a number of ways this could be done; NZ First could be part of a tripartite government, or they could just guarantee to give confidence and supply to the ruling parties, rather than being part of a formal coalition. Whatever the outcome, it looks likely that NZ First could be an intrinsic part of the new government.
So why exactly has David Seymour categorically ruled out working with Winston Peters, when the two parties have so much in common, especially in their opposition to co-governance? Winston could be very useful in protecting democracy by dismantling the co-governance structures, and no one could call him racist. David Seymour may be part-Maori himself, but it is not particularly obvious, and he is, as the great Willie Jackson would say, ‘the wrong type of Maori’. In fact, Jackson goes even further, claiming that Seymour is ‘the most dangerous man in New Zealand’ at the moment.
Actually Willie, I think that title just might belong to you.
But nobody could say that about Winston, could they? They can’t really call him a racist either. He could be a very useful asset to National and ACT in dismantling the racist structures that have been implemented here in the last three years.
For the record, I do not believe that ACT’s increase in popularity is coming from disgruntled Labour voters. They are more likely to go to NZ First. ACT’s voters are coming from National, who are often seen as too centrist, and too ‘wet’ for many right-wingers. Many of us think that a National-ACT coalition will be the best outcome at the election, with ACT having some power and influence over National in some of its policy areas. It should work really well.
So why is Brooke van Velden standing in a safe National seat? This will only split the right-wing vote, which may backfire on ACT or National. Seymour may criticise National for not agreeing with some ACT policies, but vote-splitting is not the answer. Brooke van Velden, number two on ACT’s list, would be better challenging a seat currently held by Labour or the Greens – like Auckland Central, for example.
Seymour is on the cusp of becoming a senior minister in the next government – possibly deputy prime minister – able to actually implement some of the policies that he has promised for so long…and he risks losing it all in some pre-election fit of pique.
As if that isn’t bad enough, Seymour is now saying that, if National won’t play nice in the post-election negotiations, then ACT may provide a confidence-only partnership with National, meaning that National would have to go begging to ACT for support in government spending, or ‘supply’ matters on a case-by-case basis.
Not a great basis for stable government, is it? Why should I vote for this when it could very easily turn chaotic in a few months?
I have criticised Winston in the past for not declaring his coalition preferences before the election. Voters want to know what they are voting for, as was demonstrated in 2017. Christopher Luxon has wisely not ruled out working with NZ First, knowing that National might need them after the election, but David Seymour has unwisely burned his bridges with Winston, who has an unforgiving nature. It is unlikely now that both ACT and NZ First will form part of a coalition government, and like it or not, New Zealand voted for MMP, so coalitions are expected. After the last three years, having seen how much damage a party with an outright majority can do, voters are going to expect politicians to do deals, and Seymour may find himself out in the cold.
And now, with the election only a matter of weeks away, there is clearly something wrong within the ACT party itself. Five candidates have withdrawn from the party in the last few weeks. Most have cited ‘personal reasons’. Voters don’t like political parties in disarray; this cost National a lot of votes in 2020. It could cost ACT at the election too, particularly if Seymour is unable or unwilling to address the matter in the media without the petulant attitude currently on display.
He really does give the impression that he doesn’t want to form part of the next government at all.
What we want, after three years of chaos with a government that trampled all over voters’ rights, is to see a strong and stable government take over and start to repair the enormous damage done to this country. But until David Seymour realises that he is never going to be Prime Minister and that he will always have to compromise, the prospect of another chaotic government looms. If the unprecedented support for ACT in the polls starts to wane, Seymour will only have himself to blame. He is the one who needs to learn how to play nice.
Politics in New Zealand today is about compromise. Let’s stop being petty and get on with the business of taking our country back. If we don’t, the future is grim indeed.