Top takes aim at Peters

Gareth Morgan’s The Opportunities Party (Top) is making a new push to get Labour and National voters to give Top their seat vote - so it can keep Winston Peters out of government.

The ad campaign and strategic shift targets 13 seats where both candidates from the two main parties should safely enter Parliament on the list - making a seat win redundant.

It marks a major shift in strategy from a party that has until now been mostly focused on the party vote.

Top looks unlikely to hit the 5 per cent threshold, with several polls putting it from 1 to 3 per cent in recent weeks. As such, its only ticket to Parliament would be a seat win.

The campaign started with an ad in this morning’s The Dominion Post, which implored voters to ‘‘Stop Peters’’.

‘‘In many electorates, Labour and National candidates will almost certainly get into Parliament on their party lists. Giving them your electorate vote will make no difference to where Labour or National end up on election night. Right now, both major parties need Winston to form the next government,’’ the ad reads.

‘‘Do you want this country dragged backwards by Winston’s NZF, or propelled forward by The Opportunities Party?’’

Morgan said Peters was a pork barreller, ‘‘racist’’ and ‘‘regressive’’: ‘‘He won’t face me in a debate because he know I’ll shred him,’’ he said. ‘‘I don’t want him anywhere near Parliament and any self-respecting New Zealander shouldn’t either.’’

The 13 seats targeted are: Auckland Central, Mt Albert, Manukau East, North Shore, Rodney, Mt Roskill, East Coast, Hutt South,

ha¯riu, Wellington Central, Rongotai, Christchurch Central, and Dunedin North.