The 1 NEWS Colmar Brunton political survey showed 51 percent of respondents said Ardern was their preferred prime minister, climbing seven percentage points from the last poll in February. Its the first political survey since a lone gunman killed 50 Muslim worshippers at two mosques in Christchurch on March 15. Ratings for Ardern’s rival, opposition National Party leader Simon Bridges, dropped one percentage point to five percent. Party vote results also showed Ardern’s Labour Party rising three percentage points to 48 percent while the National’s rating dropping to its lowest since September 2017, at 40 percent. Since coming to power in 2017, Ardern’s coalition government has faced several challenges including weak business confidence, emboldened unions and a slowing economy.

Source: bd News24 April 15, 2019 07:52 UTC