National retains key Auckland seats, Mt Roskill remains undecided

In Auckland’s inner southwest, the race for Mt Roskill remained unresolved late into election night. National’s incumbent MP Carlos Cheung faced off against former Labour minister Michael Wood for a second time, with the lead shifting multiple times during the count.

Cheung had previously won the seat in the 2023 election, but Wood, who had also represented the area in Parliament before, aimed to reclaim it. As of late last night, the race had not yet been called, with votes still being tallied.

Labour’s Helen White claimed the race was another key battleground in Mt Albert, where National’s Melissa Lee had been ousted from Parliament due to her list position. The Opportunity Party’s Qiulae Wong also contested the seat, finishing with the third-highest vote count.

National celebrated additional victories elsewhere, with Mahesh Muralidhar taking Tāmaki back from the Act Party. The seat had been held by National since 1960, with Act winning it in the last election. National’s Jessica Rowe also secured Kaipara ki Mahurangi by a significant margin.

Kaipara ki Mahurangi had previously been the seat of former National minister Chris Penk, who did not run in this election. Penk had lost all his ministerial roles in August following an unsuccessful leadership challenge against National leader Christopher Luxon.

National’s Paul Goldsmith was among the night’s notable losers, coming close to Act’s Seymour in Epsom but ultimately falling short. Goldsmith will leave Parliament after serving in multiple ministerial roles over the past three years.