Election waka jumping: Which party has claimed the most defectors?
Monday, 20 July 2026
The lead up to this year’s election campaign has been animated with surprise code switching, with some big names switching parties.
With fresh candidates being announced each week, some big-name former MPs and candidates have jumped ship, breaking with their past and tying their political colours to new masts.
There have also been lesser well-known defections between political parties. So far, Stuff has counted more than a dozen significant transfers.
Some are seeking election, while others have found a new home to watch things play out from. So just who is playing political party musical chairs this election?
Let’s start with the candidates. This group of wannabe MPs have all tried running for Parliament before under a different banner, and are confirmed in 2026 to be running for a new team.
Heather Te Au Skipworth
Heather Te Au Skipworth was named as the Pāti Māori candidate for Ikaroa Rāwhiti in 2023, before being unceremoniously dumped in favour of defecting Labour Party minister Meka Whaitiri.
This year, Te Au-Skipworth – who is a Hastings councillor – is standing for the Greens in Ikaroa Rāwhiti.
That’s +1 for the Greens, -1 for Te Pāti Māori.
James Christmas
ACT candidate James Christmas was a list candidate for National in 2023. Christmas worked for former National MP Chris Finlayson, who remarked he was “the smarest person I’ve ever worked with”.
In 2026, Christmas is running for ACT in the high-profile Tāmaki electorate, in place of the retiring Brooke van Velden.
That’s +1 for ACT, -1 for National.
Paul Henry
ACT has also picked up former National Party candidate Paul Henry. Yes, he’s most well known for his illustrious career as a broadcaster, but Henry has tried to get into Parliament before. He ran for National in the Wairarapa seat in 1999, losing to Labour’s Georgina Beyer.
That’s +2 for ACT, -2 for National.
George Ngatai
George Ngatai is a man with diverse interests, which stretches to politics as well. He’s currently involved with broadcasting and health. He used to be the co-chairperson for the Tāmaki Makaurau electorate committee of Te Pāti Māori, and ran for National between 1996 and 2004.
In 2020, he stood for Vision NZ – the party connected to Destiny Church.
This year, he’s confirmed as a candidate for NZ First.
That’s +1 NZ First, -1 Vision NZ.
Bernadette Soares
Businesswoman Bernadette Soares also joined Vision NZ, running for the party in Upper Harbour in 2023. This year, she will try her luck in Upper Harbour again, but this time for NZ First.
That’s +2 NZ First, -2 Vision NZ.
Turning to former MPs, several former ministers and parliamentarians are trying to return to Parliament under new banners. They are:
Stuart Nash
Former Labour Cabinet minister Stuart Nash announced his return to politics in May as a candidate for NZ First in the Napier electorate.
At the time, Nash told Stuff that NZ First was “the only party” that matched his values and that they were the only party that stands up for “good, hard-working Kiwi families”.
Nash held the Napier seat for nine years as a Labour MP, from 2014. Before that, he had served one term in parliament as a Labour list MP from 2008 to 2011.
His time in parliament ended in 2023 after he was embroiled in several scandals, including sharing private Cabinet discussions with business figures.
That’s +3 for NZ First, -1 for Labour.
Alfred Ngaro
Another new candidate for NZ First is former National minister Alfred Ngaro, who was a list MP between 2011 and 2020.
Ngaro was Minister for Pacific Peoples and Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector during his time in parliament.
He lost his seat at the 2020 general election, and in 2023, stood unsuccessfully as leader for the New Zeal Party.
Ngaro will run for NZ First in the Glendene electorate in Auckland.
That’s +4 for NZ First, -3 for National.
Harete Hipango-Brownlie
Former National MP Harete Hipango-Brownlie has also tied her political future to NZ First’s mast this election.
Hipango-Brownlie first served as an MP for the Whanganui electorate between 2017 and 2020.
She was defeated in 2020 but re-elected to parliament from the list in 2021 after the resignation of National MP Nick Smith.
Hipango-Brownlie then failed to be re-elected in 2023 despite running as National’s Te Tai Hauāuru candidate.
That’s +5 for NZ First, -4 for National.
Michael Laws
Michael Laws was a National MP between 1990 and 1996 before changing his allegiances to NZ First.
After resigning from parliament due to a scandal involving his wife, Laws managed the NZ First election campaign during the first MMP election of 1996.
Laws then went on to have a career in local government and broadcasting, and was mayor of Whanganui between 2004 and 2010.
This election will be the first time the former MP will stand as an NZ First candidate, with Laws running in the seat of Waitaki.
That’s +6 for NZ First, -5 for National.
Interestingly this year, several former MPs have popped up at political conventions for different parties. These former MPs are now involved with other parties, but aren’t (yet) looking to re-enter Parliament. So far, Stuff has seen:
Dover Samuels
Although not standing for parliament, former Labour minister Dover Samuels emerged from the political wilderness this month after revealing he had joined NZ First.
Samuels, who was Minister for Māori Development under Helen Clark, was in parliament between 1996 and 2008.
He attended the NZ First conference over the weekend and told RNZ that the Labour Party he knew was dead.
“They don't exist, they're extinct. The Labour I knew is no longer alive,” he said.
That’s +7 for NZ First, -2 for Labour.
Rino Tirikatene
Rino Tirikatene was a Labour minister alongside Nash, and has also followed him to NZ First.
Tirikatene was an MP for 13 years between 2011 and 2024, during which he was the MP for Te Tai Tonga for 12 of those years. He resigned from Parliament in January 2024 after losing Te Tai Tonga.
Stuff understands Tirikatene is unlikely to stand for NZ First in this election.
That’s +8 for NZ First, -3 for Labour.
Jackie Blue
Jackie Blue was a National MP between 2005 and 2013, and although she is not standing at the election, she has joined the Opportunity Party in a mentoring role.
Blue will help mentor Opportunities leader Qiulae Wong as they seek to become the first party from outside parliament to enter since 1996.
In March, Blue blamed the government's handling of pay equity changes as the reason for her decision to cancel her National Party membership.
“This is not a decision I take lightly, but I can no longer remain aligned to the National Party,” Blue said at the time.
That’s +1 for TOP, -6 for National.
Tanya Unkovich
Tanya Unkovich was only in Parliament a brief time, starting as an MP in 2023 for NZ First. She resigned mid 2025, saying she felt she achieved more in her role as a life coach and business mentor than as an MP.
Stuff saw she was at ACT’s rally in June. Unkovich declined to comment further.
So, who’s collecting the political wanderers?
In last place, shedding former candidates and MPs, is National. This year so far, we’ve counted six former candidates who are now running for another party.
Labour has seen three former ministers move to NZ First.
Vision NZ isn’t faring much better, with two former candidates joining NZ First.
Te Pāti Māori has lost one candidate, to the Greens, which have gained one. The Opportunity Party is also up one.
ACT has gained two candidates from National and one supporter from NZ First. That’s a gain of three wandering politicians.
But NZ First has collected candidates and former MPs from an array of parties. Its camp has grown by seven, taking from Labour, National, and Vision NZ.