Winston Peters confirms a 2026 bid for Parliament

Speculation was rife last week when a national media outlet reported that New Zealand First deputy Shanes Jones had revealed his leader and deputy prime minister, Vaovasamanaia Winston Peters will stand again at the next election.

So it was the obvious question to ask the man himself when he was interviewed by 531pi’s William Terite on Pacific Mornings.

Peters told Terite, with his trademark wry smile: “Over and over again, they still say the same thing, are you standing?”

“And of course, my response has been to wait around until the next election gets ready but (is it) on the cards for me to be standing in 2026? Most definitely.”

“There you go, we’ve heard it from you yourself,” said Terite.

“I know that’s great news for you guys, isn’t it?” said Peters.

If the next election is held in the latter part of 2026 as expected, Peters will be 81 years old - the same age as Joe Biden when he made his aborted run for the US presidency this year.

If successful, Peters will beat his own record of being the oldest person ever to enter New Zealand’s Parliament. He broke that record in 2023 when he was elected to Parliament at the age of 78.

Peters is one of New Zealand’s longest-serving politicians, having stood for Parliament 15 times, with a political career spanning over four decades.

He first stood unsuccessfully for the National Party in 1975, contesting the electorate seat of Northern Māori.

He was then elected to Parliament in 1978, after a successful bid in the Hunua electorate, again as a member of the National Party. Though his win was initially disputed and he officially took office in 1979.

From 1984, he was re-elected in Tauranga multiple times as a National candidate before he departed from the party in 1993, following disagreements with its leadership.

After his expulsion, Peters founded New Zealand First, a party that he would go on to lead, notably winning Tauranga under the new banner in the 1993 election and continuing to hold that seat until 2005.

After losing Tauranga in the 2005 election, Peters remained in Parliament as a list MP, continuing to lead New Zealand First.

In 2008, New Zealand First failed to reach the five per cent threshold required for representation, and Peters found himself out of Parliament. But he made a strong comeback in the 2011 election, bringing his party back into Parliament for nine years.

Although his party failed to return to Parliament in 2020, Peters re-entered in 2023 with NZ First winning 6.08 per cent of the party vote, giving them eight seats in Parliament. NZ First then signed a coalition agreement with the National and ACT parties to form a government.

Peters is currently the deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Watch the full interview with Vaovasamanaia Winston Peters: