Bill English buries his demons. Now what?

OPINION: For Bill English, election night was personal. Call it resilience, or a sheer bloodyminded will to win at any cost.

In his own words, he ‘‘got back up’’.

English doesn’t wear the crown yet, but the second-time National leader has stared down the ghosts of a humiliating defeat in 2002 to usher his party through the gate ahead of Labour.

Without the enigma of John Key, and against the full force of ‘‘Jacindamania’’, English is personally redeemed.

But National hasn’t crossed the line just yet, and this was hardly a romp.

That said, Taranaki voters stuck to the pattern established at the last election.

Ma¯ ori Party hopeful Howie Tamati lost by 1135 votes his bid to win the Te Tai Haua¯ uru electorate by unseating Labour MP Adrian Rurawhe.

National took 49.5 per cent of the party vote in New Plymouth, with Jonathan Young romping home by 7276 votes, comfortably beating Labour’s Corie Haddock.

In Taranaki-King Country, National took 59.2 per cent of the party vote and Barbara Kuriger was returned with a majority of 13,994.

There was some excitement early in Whanganui when Labour’s Steph Lewis took a lead over National’s Harete Hipango, who was handed the blue seat by the retired Chester Borrows.

But Whanganui is a diverse electorate, and Hipango’s supporters eventually got her over the line by 1841 votes.

But in what was one of the hardest-fought campaigns New Zealand has seen in decades, both National and Labour engaged in mistruths - National by far the more cynically.

It’s the politicking that favours the right and they remain in the box seat to govern for a rare fourth term. Now we test what democracy means in this country.

Both parties could face a protracted stare-down at the negotiating table with NZ First leader Winston Peters - he’s refused to make a decision. He has a moral duty to begin negotiations with the largest party first, but certainly no constitutional obligation.

Labour and the Greens might have briefly thought of weaving a net large enough to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

Just what will Winston demand is the question many will ask. But perhaps a more pertinent one: what will a party do to avoid dealing with him? There is already a suggestion National is considering an offer the Greens would find difficult to refuse.

If you thought the election was brutal, just wait until it gets to the negotiating table.

New Zealand’s had its say. Now it’s time for Peters to have his.