Green Party co-leader James Shaw has doubled down on his campaign's goal to return to Parliament in a Labour coalition, although he did not explicitly rule out other potential pairings.
Speaking with Breakfast this morning, he highlighted recent polls that "actually have the left bloc polling higher than the right bloc - excluding Winston Peters".
He avoided questions about ruling out - or ruling in - New Zealand First as a coalition partner, saying "the voting hasn't happened yet".
"What we know is that things are very, very tight, and ultimately if you look at history polls aren't wildly inaccurate, but often the on-the-night result has been marginally different than what the result was the week before," he said.
"Let's let New Zealanders have their say ... let's wait until the polls have closed and find out what actually happens."
Shaw said it was "not easy" working with Peters' party in the 2017 coalition, noting a proposed tax system that was blocked.
Though he did not outright refuse Peters, Shaw further affirmed his party's goal of another coalition with Labour.
"I have worked with [Peters] in the past, but I am campaigning to work with the Labour Party, and it's really important for people to know that.
"There's a million things that could happen, that's up to the voters, but our plan is to get into government with the Labour Party."
When asked about a possible coalition with National, Shaw once again avoided making - or ruling out - other political commitments, saying it would involve a wider discussion among the Green Party.
"It's not down to me and it's not down to [co-leader] Marama [Davidson] and it's not even down to our caucus, but ultimately it is up to our party members to decide who we would work with, depending on the circumstances."
Labour Leader and possible coalition partner Chris Hipkins has repeatedly ruled out working with Peters and New Zealand First during the campaign, most recently at TVNZ's final Leader's Debate last night.
Shaw argued against claims that the Greens had "stolen" votes from Labour, saying that voters were "sovereign" and were drawn to the Green's more "positive" campaign.
"A campaign based on hope, rather than fear ... it's clear that people are responding to that."
The Latest 1News Verian poll saw the Green Party climb to 14%, equating to a record 17 seats in Parliament.
The poll put a Labour-Green-Te Pāti Māori coalition at 54 seats and National-Act coalition at 58, leaving Peters in a kingmaker position with eight seats for New Zealand First.
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