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Christchurch Central — New Zealand Election Results

Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30

Christchurch Central was won by Labour Party at the 2023 general election, with a margin of 1,841 votes over National Party in the electorate vote. This page covers every general election in Christchurch Central from 1996 to 2023.

New Zealand uses Mixed-Member Proportional (MMP) voting: every voter casts two votes each election. The electorate vote below elects this seat's local MP by simple plurality (the same "winner by margin" model this site uses everywhere) — it does not by itself determine how many seats a party holds in Parliament. The separate party vote, shown further down, is what decides each party's overall share of Parliament, and often goes to a different party than the local electorate vote does.

Electorate Vote — Full History, 1996–2023

Election Winner Party Votes Vote Share Runner-up Margin
1996 Labour Party Labour Party 9,689 32.3% National Party (9,036) 653 (2.2 pts)
1999 Labour Party Labour Party 17,229 52.8% National Party (7,825) 9,404 (28.8 pts)
2002 Labour Party Labour Party 17,190 56.2% National Party (6,837) 10,353 (33.9 pts)
2005 Labour Party Labour Party 17,685 52.6% National Party (9,849) 7,836 (23.3 pts)
2008 Labour Party Labour Party 14,078 43.8% National Party (13,143) 935 (2.9 pts)
2011 National Party National Party 12,064 44.5% Labour Party (12,017) 47 (0.2 pts)
2014 National Party National Party 15,346 46.2% Labour Party (12,926) 2,420 (7.3 pts)
2017 Labour Party Labour Party 16,631 47.9% National Party (13,760) 2,871 (8.3 pts)
2020 Labour Party Labour Party 23,931 60.3% National Party (9,833) 14,098 (35.5 pts)
2023 Labour Party Labour Party 15,553 40.2% National Party (13,712) 1,841 (4.8 pts)

Party Vote in Christchurch Central

The party vote is cast on the same ballot but decides Parliament's overall makeup, not this seat's MP. Shown here for the same years as the electorate vote above, so the two can be compared directly.

ElectionParty Vote WinnerVotesShareSame as electorate vote?
1996 Labour Party 9,967 32.8% Yes
1999 Labour Party 13,407 40.7% Yes
2002 Labour Party 13,853 44.2% Yes
2005 Labour Party 16,652 48.3% Yes
2008 Labour Party 12,999 39.4% Yes
2011 National Party 12,506 44.6% Yes
2014 National Party 15,301 44.7% Yes
2017 Labour Party 14,541 40.7% Yes
2020 Labour Party 21,681 53.6% Yes
2023 National Party 12,403 31.2% No -- split result

Full Result Breakdown by Election

1996

PartyVotesShare
Labour Party9,68932.3%
National Party9,03630.1%
Alliance6,37721.2%
NZ First3,06710.2%
ACT Party9533.2%
Other6692.2%
United Future2240.7%

1999

PartyVotesShare
Labour Party17,22952.8%
National Party7,82524.0%
Alliance2,6908.2%
Green Party1,6585.1%
Other1,6385.0%
ACT Party9512.9%
NZ First6412.0%

2002

PartyVotesShare
Labour Party17,19056.2%
National Party6,83722.4%
Other2,0776.8%
Green Party1,7915.9%
United Future1,1603.8%
ACT Party7622.5%
Jim Anderton's Progressive7612.5%

2005

PartyVotesShare
Labour Party17,68552.6%
National Party9,84929.3%
Green Party2,2366.6%
Jim Anderton's Progressive1,0773.2%
NZ First1,0223.0%
United Future7612.3%
Other4811.4%
ACT Party3401.0%
Maori Party1880.6%

2008

PartyVotesShare
Labour Party14,07843.8%
National Party13,14340.9%
Green Party2,7088.4%
Other1,1073.4%
Jim Anderton's Progressive5981.9%
ACT Party4821.5%

2011

PartyVotesShare
National Party12,06444.5%
Labour Party12,01744.4%
Green Party2,3218.6%
Other5772.1%
ACT Party1100.4%

2014

PartyVotesShare
National Party15,34646.2%
Labour Party12,92638.9%
Green Party2,8008.4%
NZ First1,2453.7%
Other6552.0%
ACT Party1220.4%
Maori Party1090.3%

2017

PartyVotesShare
Labour Party16,63147.9%
National Party13,76039.7%
Green Party1,9575.6%
Other1,2633.6%
NZ First1,0913.1%

2020

PartyVotesShare
Labour Party23,93160.3%
National Party9,83324.8%
Green Party2,5666.5%
Other2,2695.7%
ACT Party1,0712.7%

2023

PartyVotesShare
Labour Party15,55340.2%
National Party13,71235.4%
Green Party5,44114.1%
NZ First1,5634.0%
ACT Party1,3953.6%
Other1,0562.7%

Margin Over Time

Electorate-vote winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.

1996: Labour Party margin 2.2 pts 1999: Labour Party margin 28.8 pts 2002: Labour Party margin 33.9 pts 2005: Labour Party margin 23.3 pts 2008: Labour Party margin 2.9 pts 2011: National Party margin 0.2 pts 2014: National Party margin 7.3 pts 2017: Labour Party margin 8.3 pts 2020: Labour Party margin 35.5 pts 2023: Labour Party margin 4.8 pts 1996 1999 2002 2005 2008 2011 2014 2017 2020 2023

Trend

Christchurch Central has been contested at 10 general elections on record since 1996. Winning parties of the electorate vote over that span: Labour Party, National Party.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won Christchurch Central in the 2023 general election?

Labour Party won the Christchurch Central electorate vote in 2023 with 15,553 votes (40.2%), a margin of 1,841 votes over National Party in second place.

Did the electorate vote and party vote agree in Christchurch Central in 2023?

No -- Labour Party won the electorate vote in Christchurch Central in 2023, but National Party won the separate party vote there.

Which parties have won the Christchurch Central electorate seat since 1996?

Since 1996, Christchurch Central has been won by: Labour Party, National Party.

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