Duncan Garner: Why I'm voting for the first time

OPINION: As broadcasters, we get accused every day of bias. 

And I'll admit, it gets to me. It shouldn't get at me, but it has.

It's not for me to say that I'm not biased, because some of you think that I am biased toward National, and some of you think that I'm biased toward Labour. And I can't change your mind. 

To me, that's the perfect result.

I have always tried to be hard but fair on all these parties, all these leaders, all these MPs. 

And every now and then - I'll admit it - I might go too hard on someone. I accept that. 

But I bet I've done it to both sides a number of times. 

And last week, you said I was too hard on Labour's Kelvin Davis, who struggled here on the programme, and this week you said I bullied Paula Bennett.

Do you know it's impossible to bully Paula Bennett? It doesn't happen.

I scanned our feedback over a couple of days - 60 people said I was a Labour Party tosser - one said that and the rest followed - and 67 people said I was with National.

Dion said that he'd like to bash the Tory out of me. And John said I was just for Labour. 

And Kay said I was "motormouth Garner", that I was a Tory from way back, and Marianne said I'd hounded Labour on tax so hard that it damaged them. 

And Mark said I should be wearing a red jacket - well, I've got one.

And Ant said I was up National's backside. And Cory said no way was I up National's backside: "He crucified Amy Adams, National's housing spokesperson."

See what I'm getting at?

I've never voted. I know I should have, but I've never voted.

I've always been too close to the action because I went to Parliament as a 21-year-old, and I decided not to.

It's been my position since 1996, and in many ways I've become pretty much disillusioned over the years by politicians and their bloody lies - I get sick of it.

I think MPs don't tell the truth often enough, and they rely far too heavily these days on these fancy spin doctors, and democracy for you and me I think is worse off.

We're given spin.

Helen Clark's former spin doctor, Mike Munro - who now works with Jacinda Ardern - he's the best in the business, he's very good. And, actually, quite honest.

He once said to me, "Garner, you don't care who you tip up as long as the red and the blue blood flows equally," and I think it's a pretty fair description to be honest.

Am I National, Labour, Greens, NZ First? I'm probably a little bit of each, actually. 

I think it's important to manage the economy well and I actually think National's done a really good job managing the global financial crisis and the natural disasters here at home.

They were given everything under the sun - and a punch between the eyes every six months. And they did okay. 

But do I need a $1000 tax cut on my salary? No. I do not need it.

Does the gap between rich and poor worry me? Of course it does. And I think it's widened under this Government, I really do, and John Key couldn't sit here a few weeks ago and say that it hadn't.

But I'm confused. I'm enrolled, but I'm confused. 

I will head to the polls, for the first time, on Saturday. So who am I going to vote for? Two days out, I have absolutely no idea. 

I like a few of them. So I've got to get a spine and a backbone and make up my mind.

Duncan Garner is the host of The AM Show, weekdays at 6am on Three and RadioLIVE