Final election results are not due until late November

Special votes and a possible overhang mean the make-up of the next Parliament may not be known for weeks.

CountryWide Media CountryWide Media|November 2, 2026

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Election results will not be settled on Saturday night.

Political commentator Peter Dunne says final results are not due until the last week of November, and the writs are returned on 3 December. “I think the die is pretty much cast,” he says.

He says polls have barely moved in three years, and the signs point to the centre and right being slightly ahead but not far enough to form a government.

He says government formation is likely to take until before Christmas, and that staff of members of Parliament are on event-based contracts with one month’s notice.

Watch the full interview:

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