15 September 2005

MEDIA RELEASE – Available for immediate release

RODNEY HIDE LEADING IN EPSOM – ELECTORS THINK LABOUR ENCOURAGING ITS SUPPORTERS TO VOTE NATIONAL INAPPROPRIATE

Labour’s encouragement for its supporters in Epsom to vote for National Party candidate Richard Worth may help ACT New Zealand candidate Rodney Hide win the seat. Although still listed on the ballot, Labour candidate Stuart Nash has withdrawn, sparking the call from Labour for its supporters to vote for Richard Worth over Rodney Hide.

A special poll, conducted in the seat of Epsom by Roy Morgan Research on September 14, 2005 shows the majority of enrolled voters in Epsom (56%) think that it was inappropriate for Labour to encourage its supporters to vote for the National candidate. A quarter (25%) thought it was appropriate for the Labour Party to encourage its supporters to vote this way, and 19% were undecided.

The Special Morgan Poll, conducted on behalf of awesome kiwi!, shows Mr Hide ahead of Mr Worth in the Electorate Vote – 39% compared with 32% - while 11% of electors in the seat remain undecided. Although Labour Party candidate Stuart Nash has withdrawn, he is attracting 12% of the vote, with the remaining 6% of votes being distributed among other Parties. Approximately two thirds of the undecided voters were not leaning toward any particular candidate.

In terms of the Party Vote, the seat of Epsom remains strongly National – 56% of electors in Epsom say they are intending to vote National, while 20% say they are intending to vote for Labour. Five percent are intending to vote for the Green Party, 4% for ACT New Zealand, 2% New Zealand First, 1% United Future New Zealand, 2% for other Parties. Seven percent are undecided how they will vote, and 3% refused to name a Party.

These are the findings from the special poll conducted by Roy Morgan Research on Voting Intention in Epsom, which was conducted last night, September 14, 2005, with a cross-section of 475 electors. The survey was conducted on behalf of Wellington-based company awesome kiwi!

Awesome Kiwi Managing Director, Dr Simon Ewing-Jarvie, an ACT list candidate, says:

“ I have commissioned this poll for two reasons. First, the Colmar Brunton / TVNZ Poll on Epsom conducted a week ago was inconsistent with three consecutive internal polls conducted by ACT over the past month. Second, irrespective of the accuracy or otherwise of the Colmar Brunton Poll, a week is a long time in politics. Rodney Hide and the ACT team have mounted what is undoubtedly the strongest campaign for a single electorate seen in NZ in many years. The fact that the Labour Party is endorsing National suggested to me that they are also polling and knew Rodney Hide was ahead.

That’s why I have chosen to fund Australia’s leading independent political pollster, Roy Morgan International, to conduct this survey.

Full results will be posted on websites later today at http://awesome-kiwi.co.nz and http://roymorgan.com

ENDS

The Morgan Poll is conducted by the ONLY
Australian and New Zealand member of the Gallup International Association.
No other public opinion poll taken in Australia or New Zealand has this qualification.

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