The 90% Project: Top Towns - Rangitīkei overtakes Whanganui as the district drops sharply

A total of 66.8 per cent of Whanganui's population are fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Photo / Lewis Gardner

Whanganui has plummeted eight spots in the race to 90 per cent full vaccination, according to the latest Ministry of Health data.

Whanganui is now sitting at 42nd position (out of 66) with 66.8 per cent of the population fully vaccinated - a drop of eight spots since Wednesday.

The city needs 13,153 people to get to fully vaccinated before it will cross the 90 per cent threshold, with 5718 of them yet to receive one dose.

That means nearby Rangitīkei District has now overtaken Whanganui, sitting at number 33, with the rise of eight spots the second-highest rise of any district since Wednesday.

So far, the district has fully vaccinated 68 per cent of its population, while 14.2 per cent have had one dose.

In South Taranaki, the district fell two spots to number 60, putting the area in the bottom six districts for the slowest uptake of the vaccine. Just 60.9 per cent are fully vaccinated.

Ruapehu's position at number 65, the second-worst performing district in the country, remains the same, with 57.1 per cent of the district fully vaccinated.

A total of 25.8 per cent of the district's eligible population remain without a single dose of the vaccine.