Chris Hipkins has experienced a significant setback according to the latest 1News Verian poll, which revealed a 10% decline in his preference as prime minister, falling from 25% in the previous poll to 15% in the current findings.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s support has remained consistent at 25%.

Nonetheless, it’s not entirely grim for Labour, as the party’s vote saw a slight increase from 27% on election night to 28% according to the poll.

The ACT party witnessed a minor decrease in support, dropping 1% from 9% at the election to 8% in the recent poll. Meanwhile, Te Pāti Māori emerged as the notable victor in this poll, conducted from February 10 to 14, boosting its party vote from 3% at the election to 3.7%.

This marks the highest level of support for the party since March 2017, approaching its all-time high of 4.4% in June 2008.

The implications of the poll suggest a modest shift in parliamentary seats if an election were to be held today.

However, the combined force of the so-called left bloc, comprising Labour, the Greens, and Te Pāti Māori (which often distances itself from the ‘left’ label), would fall short of forming a government with only 56 seats as per the poll.