Outgoing senior National MP Chris Bishop says the overhang campaign run by the Māori Party, billionaire Harry Mowbray and others was bad for democracy.
Bishop lost his Hutt South seat by less than 900 votes, and National failed to win any list seats.
Bishop told Morning Report there needs to be a reassessment of the electoral system in the wake of the overhang, which he described as "gaming the system."
He says the campaign was confusing and became a distraction from the real issues.
"I think the Māori Party have got a lot to answer for with their campaign, and I think Harry and his crew have as well."
"Most importantly, I think it was terribly confusing for voters," Bishop said.
Arriving at Parliament on Tuesday morning, senior National MP Louise Upston says losing her colleagues is "the nature of politics" but still a blow.
"It's not just a blow to caucus. They have made an extraordinary contribution."
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Upston said today was about welcoming the new MPs, as well as farewelling those who were leaving.
"In the weeks ahead, once we've got final results, we can focus on other things."
Upston would not say who should take over the finance role from Nicola Willis, acknowledging that while there would be "interest and speculation" it was something for after the special votes had landed.
Incoming Kāpiti MP Tim Costley said it would have been "amazing" to have colleagues like Chris Bishop return, saying they still had so much to offer.
"They have been fantastic. Clearly, they can hold their heads up high, but they'll be gutted."
Costley, who looks to have retained the newly redrawn electorate, said he expected emotions at this morning's caucus meeting to be mixed.
"It's going to be pretty tough to say goodbye to some great friends, great MPs, great ministers, people that have served their community and the country really well," he said.
On provisional results, there’ll be 131 seats due to overhangs from both sides of the political spectrum. (Source: 1News)
Election night 'soul-destroying' - Bishop
In a post on Facebook on Monday night, Bishop described Saturday night as "soul-destroying" and said that although there are still Special Votes to be counted, it's unlikely they will change the decision in Hutt South.
"I've rung Ginny Andersen to concede the election and congratulated her on winning Hutt South.
"After 12 years as a list and electorate MP in Hutt South, I'm out of Parliament. Feels surreal, but that's democracy and the voters are never wrong.
"I'm very proud of the local campaign we ran. National's party vote in Hutt South was less than 25% but on current numbers I'm less than 1000 behind - with a personal vote of 43%. We knocked on more doors than we've ever knocked on, delivered over 100,000 leaflets, held a dozen street corner meetings and community BBQs, and had over 300 signs up around the electorate, just to name a few things. A massive thank you to my amazing campaign team and all of the volunteers who turned up time after time to support me and support National.
"There are people who have helped me in now FIVE election campaigns who've been there right from the start. Thank you.
"I tried to run a positive and upbeat campaign. There's too much negativity out there, too much polarisation and there's too many great things happening in the Hutt. I think Lower Hutt is a better city than it was 12 years ago when I first became an MP and I hope people agree I've had a small role in making that happen.
"I've had many very nice messages from across the political spectrum since Saturday night - thank you to everyone who has rung, texted, called or emailed. It really means a lot. I won't pretend politics is easy - it isn't - so it's nice to hear that people appreciate your efforts.
"Both my two electorate offices in central Hutt and Wainuiomata will be closing in late/November and early December. Hutt South has been very well served by excellent constituency staff for me during the last twelve years and I feel for them - they're out of jobs too. A big shout-out in particular to Dawn McKinley who has worked in my Wainuiomata office for over ten years now. She's a legend.
"As to what's next for me, who knows. We have a mortgage like most people and bills to pay, so I'll be looking for job(s). I still think I've got something to offer in terms of public life but it's too early to say how or in what capacity. Right now my focus is on spending time with Jenna and our beautiful children. They have sacrificed the most, particularly in the last three years, and they deserve a better husband and Dad. I'm looking forward to a summer with them without a massive bag of paperwork sitting in the corner of the lounge."
On provisional results, there’ll be 131 seats due to overhangs from both sides of the political spectrum. (Source: 1News)
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