New Zealand braces for knife-edge election: What you need to know

Days ahead of New Zealand’s election, polls show the governing centre-right National Party and the opposition centre-left Labour Party neck and neck, with neither on course to win enough seats to govern alone.The outcome of the November 7 election could be decided by smaller parties under the country’s unique electoral system.Recommended Stories list of 2 itemslist 1 of 2New Zealand PM Christopher Luxon calls national election for November 7list 2 of 2New Zealand deputy PM heckled day after saying colonisation good for Maoriend of listHere is what you need to know:How does the election work?New Zealand holds a general election every three years under a mixed-member proportional (MMP) system.Voters cast two ballots: one for a candidate in their local electorate and one for a party.Winning candidates in each of the country’s 71 electorates take their seats automatically. There are seven electorates reserved for Maori, New Zealand’s Indigenous people. Maori voters can choose to enrol on either the Maori electoral roll or the general roll.The party vote decides how many seats each party gets overall. About 49 more seats are filled from party lists so that each party’s share of parliame...