National’s five-card hand needs an ace

While assorted commentators and pundits - known collectively as the usual suspects - attempt to lift the skirts of the National Party caucus in search of reliable information on its leadership race, much of the to-ing and fro-ing will pass over most folk’s heads.

But the selection of the right leader will determine the vigour and determination with which the Opposition holds the coalition government to account over the next two and a half years.

She or he will also set National’s course into the 2020 general election.

At the time of writing this, there were five contenders - Judith Collins, Simon Bridges, Amy Adams, Mark Mitchell and Steven Joyce - for a leadership to be voted on by the party caucus next week.

So far in this five-card hand, the players are supremely confident that they, and they alone, are equipped to lead the party which pulled one of the biggest voter support in history - but failed to stay in government.

Winston Peters’ decision to go with Labour is still the deepest cut of all for National, but instead of licking that wound the party - if it is to keep what it believes is a political numbers advantage - needs to keep its feet firmly on the ground.

The reality for National is that the more folk who decide to put their hands up for the job, the more important it is for party MPs to quickly cull the weaker runners and focus on the strongest candidate - who may not be universally popular.

Latest poll results show Labour continues on a roll. This poll popularity is likely to continue until such time as National has a leader capable to taking the fight to the government.

There are capable people within National but few, very few, have what it takes to not only lead the party while punching holes in the government, but keep the next election firmly in sight.

Politics is primarily a game of personalities. But personalities need to be supported by experience, guile, reslience and a huge dollop of animal cunning.

A successful political leader is not a soft-handshake goody two shoes - as Labour repeatedly found to its cost until last year.

For National this is not a time for navel-gazing introspection or hand-holding.

It is a time to take off the gloves, wield the sledgehammer, and put the government to the torch.

If a leader is picked who cannot deliver on that then National better get used to the Opposition benches.