1
00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:01,560
Speaker 1: Now listen, I think it's a little earlier in the

2
00:00:01,639 --> 00:00:04,200
Speaker 1: year to be making too many predictions about election year.

3
00:00:04,960 --> 00:00:06,760
Speaker 1: Having said that, I do think that there is a

4
00:00:06,840 --> 00:00:09,360
Speaker 1: very strong chance that Winston Peters might be the story

5
00:00:09,400 --> 00:00:11,600
Speaker 1: of this year. If he carries on the way that

6
00:00:11,640 --> 00:00:13,320
Speaker 1: he is in the polls, he could well be in

7
00:00:13,320 --> 00:00:15,760
Speaker 1: the double digits, like well into the double digits by

8
00:00:15,800 --> 00:00:18,840
Speaker 1: the time November's election rolls around. He's already sitting somewhere

9
00:00:18,880 --> 00:00:21,000
Speaker 1: between around ten and twelve in the last couple of poles,

10
00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:23,960
Speaker 1: and generally minor parties go up and polling the closer

11
00:00:23,960 --> 00:00:26,040
Speaker 1: we get to election day because of the extra attention

12
00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:29,640
Speaker 1: that they get during the campaign. Commentators are already talking

13
00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:33,760
Speaker 1: about the possibility of the next government being just National

14
00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:36,440
Speaker 1: and New Zealand First, no act in there. Just the

15
00:00:36,440 --> 00:00:39,120
Speaker 1: two of them together may be enough if that would happen,

16
00:00:39,200 --> 00:00:41,240
Speaker 1: if he keeps on this as Winston keeps on climbing

17
00:00:41,280 --> 00:00:43,599
Speaker 1: the way he is, and obviously if National can get

18
00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:46,120
Speaker 1: its act together and lift its vote share. If you

19
00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:49,720
Speaker 1: don't believe it's possible that Winston will climb more, just

20
00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:51,400
Speaker 1: look at what he did this week. It did that

21
00:00:51,440 --> 00:00:55,120
Speaker 1: old Winston trick of whipping up the anti immigrant rhetoric again.

22
00:00:55,360 --> 00:00:57,600
Speaker 1: I actually didn't think that there was very much of

23
00:00:57,600 --> 00:00:59,800
Speaker 1: that sentiment around at the moment until he started talking

24
00:00:59,840 --> 00:01:02,640
Speaker 1: in the texts about the immigrants started rolling in. Winston

25
00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:05,000
Speaker 1: can sniff out an election platform like no one else.

26
00:01:05,240 --> 00:01:07,680
Speaker 1: He knows. There's a probably increased number of people who

27
00:01:07,720 --> 00:01:10,520
Speaker 1: are gagging for a conspiracy like the government is trying

28
00:01:10,560 --> 00:01:13,160
Speaker 1: to hide the FTA documents that try to roll on us.

29
00:01:13,520 --> 00:01:15,640
Speaker 1: And what we were also reminded of this week is

30
00:01:15,640 --> 00:01:18,320
Speaker 1: that he's completely unencumbered by the facts. A lot of

31
00:01:18,319 --> 00:01:21,160
Speaker 1: what he said was just complete nonsense. Here's a question

32
00:01:21,280 --> 00:01:24,280
Speaker 1: for you. If it does end up being just New

33
00:01:24,360 --> 00:01:28,600
Speaker 1: Zealand first and National and Winston is eighty one years old,

34
00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:32,560
Speaker 1: is this the election that he finally pushes for a

35
00:01:32,640 --> 00:01:35,520
Speaker 1: turn at being prime minister? Like I said, he could

36
00:01:35,520 --> 00:01:38,679
Speaker 1: become the story of this election year. For more from

37
00:01:38,760 --> 00:01:42,040
Speaker 1: Heather Duplessy Allen Drive, listen live to News Talks. It'd

38
00:01:42,040 --> 00:01:46,160
Speaker 1: be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.