Sir John Key made an unexpected pre-election appeal on Thursday morning, claiming this year's result is "far from certain".
It comes after recent polling showed if National and ACT want to form a government following the October 14 election, they will need the support of New Zealand First.
The latest Newshub Reid Research Poll showed the right bloc of National-ACT would only get 60 seats – one short of the number needed to form a government. This means they would need New Zealand First who would have six seats based on the Newshub poll.
The former Prime Minister took to social media on Thursday morning urging New Zealanders to party vote National to avoid waking up on October 15 in "limbo land".
Sir John said messy coalition discussions could send the cost of living even higher.
"The economic situation isn’t dissimilar to 2008 when my government came in and guided New Zealand through the Global Financial Crisis.
"If there’s one team with the competence to steer New Zealand through tough economic times again, it’s Chris Luxon and his National team."
Sir John isn't the only former Prime Minister endorsing a political party on social media.
Former Prime Minister Dame Jacinda Ardern took to social media last week to reveal she had voted from New York.
"It’s the first time since I started voting that I haven’t been involved in the campaign, but popping a ballot in the box felt just as important," Dame Jacinda said in an Instagram post.
"You’ll all know where my ticks went (two ticks for Chippy and the Labour team every time)."
Sir John also gave his support to then-National Party leader Judith Collins in the weeks leading up to the 2020 election.
"The reality is - I think she's been campaigning really really well. She's had good debates, she's looked confident and strong, she's known her policies, she's on the right issues, I think, in terms of the economy," Sir John told Newstalk ZB in October, 2020.
Full Sir John Key speech:
Hi everyone.
With Election Day around the corner, people are asking for my thoughts,
So, here’s a couple.
First, the election result is far from certain.
Imagine if we woke up on 15 October in limbo land.
Now if you’re like me and you want something different than we’ve had in the last 6 years, then you’re going to need to vote for it.
To make sure National has the numbers it needs to govern well for you, without lots of moving parts, make sure you Party Vote National.
Second, the economy isn’t doing well. But most of you already know that thanks to the high cost of living.
This is the main reason we can’t risk an uncertain election result.
Uncertainty means no action to fix the economy and lower your cost of living.
The economic situation isn’t dissimilar to 2008 when my Government came in and guided New Zealand through the Global Financial Crisis.
We could only take decisive action, because there was a clear result on election night and a strong mandate to get things done.
If there’s one team with the competence to steer New Zealand through tough economic times again, it’s Chris Luxon and his National team.
So, don’t risk having no clear election result.
If you want change, Party Vote National and make sure National has the numbers to get our country back on track.
