New Zealand Elects New PM

After nine years. New Zealand has voted Helen Clark out of office, and John Keys of the National Party will be the new prime minister. He secured 45% of the vote with Ms. Clark's Labour Party trailing with only 34%. Mr. Keys is now negotiating a coalition with the right-wing ACT party and centrist United Future.,and he intends to include the Maori Party as well. He could be sworn in as early as next week.

Mr. Keys said, “"I've got a framework in my head about how it's going to work, but there's a few moving parts, and we'll work our way through that. I think the country wants us to get on with it and that's the spirit we are going to go into those negotiations on.”

Meanwhile, Ms. Clark took responsibility for the loss, and she has resigned as leader of the Labour Party. Her second-in-command, Michael Cullen is also stepping down from his job. Former trade minister Phil Goff appears to be the man Labour will follow as the main opposition party,

Under Ms. Clark, New Zealand has done quite well. There have been significant social victories, falling crime rates, and economic growth. In foreign affairs, she positioned New Zealand as a Pacific state rather than a part of the Commonwealth that looks to Europe. She opposed the American invasion of Iraq-Nam saying, “ "I don't think that September 11 under a Gore presidency would have had this consequence for Iraq."

Be that as it may, she fell into the same trap that John McCain did. The economy tanked, and her party had been in charge so long there was no way to avoid taking the hit. Mr. Keys used to be an investment banker before he came to parliament just 6 years ago. He had the financial credibility to outflank her on the main issue. There won't be much of a change in policy, though. Tax breaks and extra spending figured in both parties' promises.

© Copyright 2008 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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