Labour's Rachel Boyack has claimed victory in Nelson after a judicial recount in the seat, gaining eight more votes in the process.
Her closest rival, National's Blair Cameron, had won the seat on preliminary results with a margin of 54 votes.
However, after special votes were counted, it flipped back to Boyack, with a margin of 29 votes.
Cameron called for a judicial recount, and the margin between the two was now 26 votes.
In a statement, Boyack said she was delighted with the result and it was the privilege of her life to be the MP for Nelson.
Boyack won the seat in the 2020 election. Before that, it was held by National's Nick Smith for 24 years.
"I'm looking forward to continuing my work as a strong advocate for the Nelson region," Boyack said.
She acknowledged Cameron, who she said ran a "strong campaign" in Nelson.
"I'm looking forward to getting back to Parliament and working alongside my colleagues under Chris Hipkins' leadership to hold the new Government to account.
"Labour will be a formidable opposition and I intend to play my part as a strong local MP for Nelson."
She said that included "ensuring investment continues in public transport, the Nelson Hospital Upgrade, housing and significant economic development projects".
Speaking to 1News, Cameron gave his congratulations to Boyack and said he'd appreciated the opportunity to run in the seat.
He also appreciated the support he'd received, including an "awesome team of volunteers".
Cameron said the election was "very close", adding that it was of course disappointing.
Asked if he planned to stand for National in the seat in 2026, he said he was "absolutely committed to Nelson" and he would figure out how best to help make the city as best it could be.
Boyack, a union organiser, had her Plain Language Bill passed into law in October last year. The law change was aimed at removing jargon from public organisations, and promote the use of plain language in official documents and websites.
Cameron studied at Brown University in the United States before working as a researcher at Princeton University.
Most recently he held concurrent roles in research, consulting and teaching for the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Leadership Academy for Development at Stanford University.
Two further judicial recounts are expected – in Tāmaki Makaurau, where Te Pāti Māori candidate Takutai Kemp holds a margin of just four over Labour's Peeni Henare; and Mt Albert, where Labour's Helen White holds the seat over National's Melissa Lee by 20 votes.
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