It's official: Jacinda Ardern is one of New Zealand's most popular Prime Minister and Simon Bridges is hurtling into political oblivion.
We have never seen anything like the results in our latest Newshub-Reid Research Poll but the country has never experienced anything quite like COVID-19.
These are extraordinary numbers for extraordinary times - they will blow your mind.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's popularity is off the charts, and equally, National leader Simon Bridges' popularity has been totally annihilated.
Bridges has never personally cut muster with voters but now - with the help of COVID-19 - he's basically destroyed the National Party's prospects of being elected and his future as leader looks bleak.
On this poll, Labour is the only show in town, the only party in power by a mile - 56.5 percent up 14 points - the highest it's ever been in our poll and the highest any party ever has.
Conversely - and this is the heart stopping moment for National - the biggest party in Parliament is blown to smithereens - 30.6 percent down a jaw-dropping 12.7 points.
The bedrock built by former Prime Minister Sir John Key - obliterated.
National isn't the only party suffering from the Ardern-effect. The Greens are in dicey territory on 5.5 percent, edging a dot closer to the 5 percent threshold needed to get into Parliament.
But it's far worse for Winston Peters and co. All National's votes have gone to Labour and so too a chunk of New Zealand First's - on 2.7 percent down 0.9.
Ardern doesn't need any of them - she's queen in her own right.
As for the minor parties there's no one worth mentioning but ACT on 1.8 percent - no change since our last poll.
These numbers really hit home when you see them as seats in the House.
- Labour gets 72 seats
- National gets 39 - at least 16 MPs would lose their jobs
- The Greens get 7 seats
- If ACT wins Epsom that's 2 seats
Look at that red tsunami. This is the voter's verdict on the Prime Minister's handling of COVID-19. It doesn't get much more emphatic than that.
And every red seat that's replaced a blue seat is a National Party MP now itching to roll Bridges.
The Newshub-Reid Research Poll was conducted between 8-16 May with half of the responses taken after the Budget.
The poll has a maximum sample error of +/- 3.1 percent.
