Election 2026: The Greens dialled down middle-class woke politics and surged in the polls – Bryce Edwards

Opinion byBryce EdwardsNZ Herald·13 Oct, 2026 11:05 PM9 mins to readDr Bryce Edwards is a lecturer in political studies at the University of Otago. He is the director of the Democracy Project focused on scrutinising vested interests in politics. Green Party co-leaders Marama Davidson (left) and Chlöe Swarbrick.The Green Party is riding high in the opinion polls. Last night’s 1News-Verian poll had them on 15%, following two consecutive results of 16% in the same poll. The party also recorded 14.8% in the RNZ-Reid Research poll, 14% in the Post-Freshwater survey and 13.3% in the latest Taxpayers’ Union-Curia