Duncan Garner - Editor In Chief

Would Qiulae Wong put National or Labour into power? And what would she demand in return?

The Opportunity Party leader joins Duncan Garner to explain her five bottom lines, why tax reform isn’t a condition of a deal, and where she stands on Winston Peters. Duncan presses her on the cost of living, supermarket competition, power bills and how much a minor party could actually deliver.

Then Ani O’Brien and former National minister Maurice Williamson give their verdict on Wong’s answers and debate strategic voting, a possible hung Parliament and whether National has left its toughest decisions too late.

Could the smallest shift in votes decide who gets the keys to the Beehive?

With thanks to LifeDirect.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A snarky debate, rehearsed answers and plenty of missed opportunities. Did either leader give New Zealanders a reason to feel confident?

Duncan Garner, Ani O’Brien and former National minister Maurice Williamson give their verdict on the TVNZ leaders’ debate between Christopher Luxon and Chris Hipkins.

Where did Luxon let Hipkins off the hook? Was Hipkins better at debating than answering the hard questions? And why wasn’t there more scrutiny of the coalition partners who could shape the next government?

From the cost of living and tax promises to health, education and law and order, the panel picks apart the exchanges that mattered.

Join Duncan LIVE on YouTube every Sunday at 7pm for more Election 2026 coverage.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Opportunity Party leader Qiulae Wong joins Duncan Garner in the studio as TOP surges in the polls and positions itself to potentially hold the balance of power this election. With the party sitting around the key 5% threshold, Qiulae breaks down TOP's five non-negotiable bottom lines, including cracking down on supermarket competition, regulating lobbying, reforming health, and recommitting to climate targets.

Maurice Williamson and Ani O'Brien join Duncan on the panel to dissect whether Christopher Luxon can keep ruling TOP out, how vote splitting affects National and minor parties under MMP, and what a tight election result could mean for New Zealand's political landscape.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The government has officially stripped non-elected members of voting rights on Auckland Council committees, including the Auckland Māori Statutory Board. It brings us back to a basic democratic principle: if you want the power to vote, you should have to stand for election and face the voters. But while the core principle makes sense, the process behind it has been messy and rushed. We break it down with Maurice Williamson and Ashley Church.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our latest rolling poll of polls averages out the numbers and hands this election to the left. National is narrowly ahead in the party vote, but MMP arithmetic means Labour, the Greens, Te Pāti Māori, and TOP could have enough seats to form a government. Last night's debate showed just how tight this contest really is, even if most voters have already made up their minds.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nicola Willis has used nuclear political language, calling Chris Hipkins a liar over Labour's alternative budget. She claims there is a $10 billion-plus hole in their pay equity promises. We break down the biggest takeaways from our interview, including her warnings about Winston Peters, supermarket competition reforms, and why Chris Hipkins refused to front up on the show.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2026 election battle is officially underway, and cost of living is front and centre. We sit down with Finance Minister Nicola Willis to unpack Labour’s fiscal plan, soaring petrol prices, and whether supermarket structural changes can actually lower your grocery bill. Plus, we look at the brutal MMP mathematics that could leave senior ministers without a seat in Parliament.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Buried in the minor parties debate, Winston Peters dropped a massive election grenade: an extra $120 a week for working families. That is over $6,000 a year, but when pushed on how to pay for it, he pointed to economic growth, mining, and a future fund we know little about. Promises are easy, but numbers are hard. We look at whether this holds up or triggers a massive spending auction.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chris Hipkins goes missing when asked how Labour will pay for its promises. Duncan Garner tracks down the missing Labour leader who refuses to front for the Editor-in-Chief podcast after getting put through the political wringer on his uncosted $18 billion budget. Plus, former All Blacks captain Tane Randall joins the show to talk about standing for New Zealand First, cutting SME taxes, and getting small businesses growing.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It is only day three of the election campaign, and the left is already fighting over the Treasury keys. Chlöe Swarbrick wants the finance portfolio, Chris Hipkins says Barbara Edmonds gets it bottom line, and Labour is talking up a mini budget to cover its promises. We break down the massive numbers, the pay equity demands, and why the arithmetic simply does not add up.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices