Image: Electoral CommissionHowever, the night is an absolute bloodbath for Judith Collins' National Party — and Labour's former coalition partner NZ First was kicked out of Parliament. “It was a pretty up and down night.”With all non-special votes counted, Simmonds holds a lead of 685 votes over Labour's Liz Craig. With 58.9% of votes counted, Labour candidate Liz Craig holds a narrow lead of just 498 votes over National's Penny Simmonds. National candidate Penny Simmonds is spending her night at Ascot Park Hotel with family, friends and national party members . 7.20pm - Early results from across New ZealandWith 2% of the vote counted, Labour is faring even better than the polling numbers.

Source: Otago Daily Times October 17, 2020 09:00 UTC