National Party president Sylvia Wood believes Christopher Luxon’s “humanity” isn’t as visible to voters amid declining preferred Prime Minister ratings for the National leader.
Wood, citing Luxon’s “business-like” manner, says she is confident his “competence” will rival the popularity of former leaders like Sir John Key and Dame Jacinda Ardern as she lauds Luxon’s leadership of a “challenging” three-party coalition.
It comes as party faithful convene in Christchurch this weekend for National’s annual conference and preparations for the 2026 election ramp up.
About 500 are expected to take part in proceedings, held yesterday and today at the Air Force Museum of New Zealand in Wigram.
It features an address from Luxon and presentations from several ministers on various topics, including the cost of living, health, education, crime and agriculture.
Luxon will also be partnering Speaker of the House and long-time National MP Gerry Brownlee to give the members some entertainment.
Speaking to the Herald from Christchurch, Luxon said his party was in “very good heart” and believed its membership was feeling upbeat.
“We’ve been able to raise funds and we’ve got very good support, the members and supporters are very energised.”
He said his central messages would be squarely focused on the Government’s long-term economic plan.
“We’re making progress. There’s more to do, but we’ve got a very good economic plan that’s doing the right things for the long-term.”
Espousing National’s economic management while in Government has been a common theme for Luxon and Finance Minister Nicola Willis in recent weeks as cost of living issues, such as the high price of butter, dominate public concern.
In June, the Ipsos Issues Monitor found voters believed Labour was better equipped than National to manage the cost of living, which was ranked the issue of highest concern.
Sitting down with the Herald ahead of the conference, Wood echoed her party leader by noting polls “bounced around” but acknowledged the strain New Zealanders were under.
“We’re good at economic management, but it’s tough and you know, Liberation Day (US president Donald Trump’s tariff announcement) didn’t help,” she admitted.
“I’m very comfortable that we’re working at the macro-level to get the fundamentals right that will really pay dividends downstream.”
President since 2022, Wood would be putting herself forward to continue in the role as part of the party board selection process, which would include former president Peter Goodfellow stepping down as a board member.
At last year’s conference, Wood declared National should be polling in the mid-40s before the 2026 election after receiving 38% of the vote in 2023.
Across several opinion pollsters, National hasn’t registered above 40% since January last year and hasn’t breached 35% since April.
Wood maintained a target in the 40s was feasible but said it relied heavily on the economy.
“When New Zealanders can see the cost of living easing and the economy thriving and the confidence that that will continue, I see party vote going up.”
She believed the same would apply to Luxon’s preferred PM ratings. Taxpayers’ Union – Curia polling, which also conducted polling for National, found Luxon had dropped more than 15 percentage points in the last year to be neck-and-neck with Labour leader Chris Hipkins.
Wood argued she saw a side to Luxon that often wasn’t seen by the public.
“I think perhaps that the humanity of the man is perhaps not as visible,” Wood said.
“He’s business-like and business isn’t always seen as a hero in New Zealand.
“I would love the public to see the warmth and the humanity.”
She recalled the popularity of Key and Ardern, and believed Luxon could match them, by leading economic recovery.
“We’ve had a couple of engaging leaders, Kiwis pretty much loved them in broad terms.
“But we’ve got someone who will thrive on that competency factor because he is really good at that.”
Wood credited Luxon with managing what she described as a “challenging” three-party coalition.
“We’ve got two [party] leaders who are clear about their particular positions, and our job is to address the cost of living and restore law and order … Erica [Stanford] is doing a wonderful job in education.
“The members are very, very comfortable with the progress we’re making, but we appreciate it’s difficult for people out there at the moment, the cost of living pressure is tough.”
Adam Pearse is the Deputy Political Editor and part of the NZ Herald’s Press Gallery team based at Parliament in Wellington. He has worked for NZME since 2018, reporting for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei and the Herald in Auckland.