Newshub-Reid Research poll: Jacinda Ardern rivals Bill English as preferred Prime Minister

There is now a real contest for Prime Minister with Jacinda Ardern on near even footing with Bill English as preferred Prime Minister.

In the latest Newshub-Reid Research poll, Ms Ardern has had a surge of 19.6 points, up to 26.3 percent.

That puts her just 1.4 percent behind Bill English.

In the last Newshub poll, Ms Ardern was sitting at 8.7 percent, ahead of her then-leader Andrew Little who was on 7.1. That means 15.8 percent wanted someone from Labour as Prime Minister - Ms Ardern has added an extra 10.5 percent to that by taking the reins.

In comparison to her rise, Bill English has gone up 2.9 points since the last Newshub poll - putting him at 27.7 percent.

Newshub-Reid Research poll preferred PM
Newshub.

Ms Ardern's result is the highest of any Labour leader since Helen Clark, who was polling at 36 percent on our poll just before she was beaten by John Key in 2008.

The last leader to get such a big jump in support was Bill English, who snatched up nearly all of Mr Key's popularity when he resigned as Prime Minister in December 2016.

Mr Key was polling at 36.7 percent in the preferred Prime Minister stakes before his resignation, while Bill English was down on 0.3 percent. Mr English's support jumped to 25 percent when he took over as Prime Minister.

The support for Winston Peters to be Prime Minister has dipped slightly - he was coming in second to Mr English in the last poll at 11.9 percent - that's dropped back to 10 percent.

Newshub.