Political commentator Bryce Edwards says political parties are running the risk of turning the New Zealand public “away in disgust” if divisive tensions continue to rise.
The 2023 election campaign is heating up and tensions are rising both within Parliament and on the campaign trail.
Joining AM Early on Thursday, Edwards said he’s witnessed politics become more tense and divisive over the last year – something he’s not seen for a “long, long time”.
“It’s out there in society and the public with a lot of discontent. Polls show that people think New Zealand is heading in the wrong direction.”
He said with the visible “social dislocation” and polarisation – politicians are picking up on it
“Essentially, they’re trying to get votes out of this.”
Edwards pointed to some of the political parties’ campaign slogans: New Zealand First’s ‘Let’s take our country back’ and National’s ‘Let’s get New Zealand back on track’.
Edwards said the mood is “looking much worse than we’ve seen in a long time” and also pointed to Labour already talking about running a more negative campaign to highlight what it believes a National-ACT coalition might look like.
He believes the current type of political tactics used by parties could turn the public off and “away in disgust”. He told AM Early it “tends to produce a decline in voter turnout when things get nasty like this and polarised”.
“Culture wars are a big part of it as well because you have minor parties, especially from left to right, Greens, ACT, New Zealand First that are really pushing, you know, sort of stuff about race and condemnations and ethnicity. It really can turn people off,” he said.
“So I think that’s the real danger we’re at at the moment.”
Newshub
The usual theory is that negative campaigning lowers the turnout, but the turnout of the left is lowered by the largest amount.
So Chippy can go negative all he wants, it won’t help him. But it will really reinforce with voters that the last six years have all been a massive charade and will reveal the true nature of Labour, nasty, vindictive, spiteful and jealous.
Labour’s support will tank, and all the opposition parties will gain as people turn their backs, literally, on Labour.
Only two questions remain for me… are Labour working hand in glove with Nicky Hager on their own Dirty Politics plan, and can Labour beat Bill English’s record low score of 20.93% for a major political party?
Cam Slater is a New Zealand-based blogger, best known for his role in Dirty Politics and publishing the Whale Oil Beef Hooked blog, which operated from 2005 until it closed in 2019. This article was first published HERE
5 comments:
I suggest Bryce and many others should listen to Leighton Smith's latest podcast. He has a chat to Stephen Jennings. The best is towards the end of the interview. Stephen, who is obviously a positive person by nature, thinks NZ has major problems(not just ordinary economic issues) and thinks we need strong leadership to turn the ship around. Unfortunately, in my view, I cannot see where that leadership will come from.
Many have been disillusioned for a long time but fear of cancellation has contained them. The election at last gives opportunity to apply views without fear of cancellation. As the event nears the audacity to be honest increases.
@ Ross, agree re NZ having major problems and needing stronger leadership.This has been missing for the last 6 years.
The World is moving on and NZ is stuck on petty non productive things that donot further the well being of the country one iota.
It’s a divided populace grabbing its bit of the pie and screw everything else.
The sad reality for NZ Politics, is we have relied on the 2 party system, even after the introduction of MMP, we still had 2 main parties, with the Greens & NZ First joining the "ranks of the wanna be's".
I wonder how many people, in NZ would remember the Social Credit Party, a one man band, till it folded and became part of history.
If you look at past Political Parties, especially when it came to pre election time, the Leader was the main focus on the "news, views, and interviews", with some other party members joining in, when needed.
If you look at today, the same thing, the Parties "rise & fall" based on who the Leader is and what they say.
Jacinda's rise "to fame" was based her being young, female (and whitless) and the Labour pundits, rightly knew that NZ had had enough of John Key, so the point made was - "look at our Leader" -and guess what, she got elected - the female and younger vote for her must have been huge!
The older more astute, voted for Winnie the Poo, as many of them have done since he created NZ First - and will do, again in October 2023.
For a new party to enter the fray, it will need to be astute in "people management (that is potential politicians) with the ability to "sway the NZ Public" to believing that this is the "time for new faces, policy and direction", not the same old, re trashed stupidity as we have had for years
past.
It is sad to think, in the future, that the potential of an elected group from a list of potential people, being, selected by the NZ Public, will be based on differing standards, abilities, thinking attributes and false promise, to lead NZ across the future times.
ANON, of New Zealand
A more negative campaign by both parties would be more honest and clarify major issues.Imagine instead of threatening Cossacks, a horde of hakaring maori/trace maori. The scope for negative presentation and mockery of the current maorification move so supported by Labour is endless.
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