[EM] Final count puts NZ coalition govt as minority

[DEMOREP1 at aol.com]

I note that 100 percent/120 seats = 0.833 percent/seat
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NZ govt slips to minority on final election count
  
WELLINGTON, Dec 10 (Reuters) - The New Zealand coalition government slipped 
into a minority in parliament when the final election count on Friday took 
one seat from the Labour Party and gave it to the Greens. 

The change meant that the Labour/Alliance coalition government has 59 seats 
in the single-chamber 120 seat parliament, and is beholden to minor parties 
to pass legislation. 

The Greens, who now have seven seats, have pledged to support the coalition 
on matters of confidence and supply. 

The markets, which have calmly watched the recount take place over several 
days, took the news calmly. There was hardly a wobble in the New Zealand 
dollar which continued to trade around $0.5070. 

The final tally of seats, subject to electorate recounts, puts centre-left 
Labour on 49 seats, conservative National (the outgoing government) on 39 
seats, the left wing Alliance on 10 seats, free market ACT on nine seats, the 
environmentalist Greens on seven seats, nationalist New Zealand First on five 
seats and centrist United on one. 

Prior to the final count, the Labour/Alliance coalition was evenly poised on 
60 seats out of 120. The Greens had six seats. 

Greens co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons told Radio New Zealand that the 
relationship between her party and the government was unchanged. 

``Even before this extra seat changed they needed us in order to continue 
governing and we had agreed on a cooperative relationship.'' 

The Greens got the extra seat because their share of the national list vote, 
under New Zealand's German-style mixed member proportional system, rose to 
5.2 percent from 4.9 percent on election night on November 27. 

While National and ACT will make up the opposition, the Labour/Alliance 
government of Prime Minister Helen Clark will be able to seek votes from the 
non-aligned NZ First and United parties on individual votes that are not 
supported by the Greens. 

The situation may yet change again as National is seeking a recount in the 
constituency of Tauranga where NZ First leader and former deputy Prime 
Minister Winston Peters is hanging on by 62 votes. 

If Peters loses that seat his party will lose all its MPs as NZ First 
recorded 4.3 percent list vote support, short of the five percent threshold 
for parliamentary representation without a constituency win. 

17:29 12-09-99