Follow the Electoral Commission's preliminary results from 7pm on 7 November. A short guide to what the changing numbers do, and do not, tell you.
What happens when millions of separate choices start becoming one national picture? Election night is a chance to watch that picture build, without pretending the first piece tells the whole story.
## Where to watch the real results
The Electoral Commission says preliminary results for the 2026 General Election will be available progressively from 7pm on Saturday 7 November, Aotearoa New Zealand time.
[Open the official election results website](https://electionresults.govt.nz/ge2026/) to follow its updates. Abby's Labs links you to that source; it is not hosting an automatic copy of the count. Figures might not appear exactly at 7pm.
## How quickly will the count arrive?
The Commission's targets are results from 50% of voting places by 10pm and 95% by 11.30pm. Those are targets, not guarantees.
Notice the words "voting places". That is not the same as the percentage of all votes counted. Voting places have different numbers of voters.
## Three questions for every update
First: is this the party vote or an electorate result? Party votes largely determine each qualifying party's share of seats. An electorate result tells you which candidate is ahead in one area. Do not add the two together.
Second: how much has been counted, and when was the page updated? Early numbers are not a representative opinion poll. The order votes arrive can change the picture.
Third: does it say preliminary or official? Election-night results are preliminary. They can change as checking and counting continue, including special votes. The Commission expects to publish official results on Friday 27 November.
## Your results detective challenge
With a grown-up, choose two updates on the official site. Note their times, the count progress, and one number that changed. What can you say confidently? What is still unknown?
No need to stay up late or pick a winner. Understanding why the picture changes is the discovery.
Abby's Labs opinion polls, visitor votes and election-night simulator are separate learning activities, not the real election count. This update does not endorse any party or candidate.
Release information checked against the Electoral Commission's results website on 7 November 2026.