00:00And following a period dominated by the cost-of-living crisis and an economy affected by the war in the
00:05Middle East,
00:06New Zealand went to the polls this Saturday for one of the closest elections in its history.
00:11In this context, with more than 97% of the votes counted,
00:15preliminary results produced no definitive victory for the right or the left.
00:21But the incumbent Conservative government has obtained a narrow majority that could allow it to return to power.
00:28The centre-right National Party and its minor party coalition partners,
00:32Libertarian Act and Populist New Zealand First could have bested the left-wing bloc
00:38led by the Labour Party and Chris Hipkins, which appeared to have fallen short of a majority.
00:45According to the Electoral Commission, final results are expected to be announced on November 27.
00:59Precisely in this scenario, speaking to supporters in the capital, Wellington,
01:04New Zealand opposition leader Chris Hipkins stressed the urgent need for political cooperation
01:10and emphasised that compromise will be essential for the country's political future.
01:16And tonight it's clear that we're not going to know the exact shape of our next government for a little
01:22while longer yet.
01:24But there are some things that are clear from tonight's results.
01:29Our next parliament is going to require all of us to compromise, to work together and to find common ground.
01:38Another topic is France.
