New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Wednesday that he survived a leadership vote prompted by a challenge from his defense minister less than three months before an election.
The vote took place during a hastily convened meeting of Luxon’s centre-right National Party lawmakers at Parliament in Wellington, which was held behind closed doors and ran for more than three hours. Luxon then emerged flanked by his lawmakers to give a brief statement and departed without taking any questions from reporters.
“There was a confidence vote in my leadership this morning at our caucus meeting,” he said. “I had the full support of our caucus and our caucus is united and it is determined to win this election.”
Luxon didn’t say how many lawmakers had voted for him to continue in the job, although such ballots are usually a secret.
Hours later, he said in a statement that the vote was prompted by a leadership challenge from his defense minister, Chris Penk, adding that he had removed Penk from his ministerial portfolios. On Wednesday night, Luxon’s office distributed a statement from Penk, in which the challenger said he would quit Parliament altogether.
The vote was the second Luxon had called about his own leadership since April and leaves lingering questions coming so close to the election scheduled for Nov. 7.
The April vote followed drops in polling for National, while this week’s followed recent public remarks Luxon had made on various issues that some in his party saw as gaffes.
On Tuesday, the leader took the rare step of disclosing on social media that he faced renewed rumblings about his leadership, and announcing he would call a meeting of his lawmakers Wednesday to resolve it.
“It is my firm belief that division and disunity are a major distraction only 90 days out from the election,” he wrote on X. “I also believe this distraction is unfair to the New Zealand people, and dedicated National Party candidates, supporters and volunteers, when there is so much at stake.”
National has led a right-wing coalition government since New Zealand’s 2023 election. Luxon, a former airline executive who entered Parliament in 2020, had led the party since 2021.
Details of who had prompted the leadership rumblings at first remained a mystery.
Nobody publicly confirmed plans for a leadership bid or expressed intentions to oust their leader, and those whose names were reported speculatively by news outlets denied it.
Several hours after the vote, Luxon named Penk as his challenger and said his now former minister’s position was “untenable.”
Penk, 47, was also the minister for building and construction, and responsible for the security services and space portfolios. A former lawyer who served in Australia’s navy, Penk entered Parliament in 2017.
He didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday, but in the statement Luxon’s office attributed to him, Penk said he had “reflected on my political future with my family tonight” and would not seek reelection in November, effectively ending his political career.
“I am proud of the progress I have contributed to as a Minister this term,” Penk’s statement said. “However, I have decided it is the time for me to seek other opportunities to serve New Zealand.”
The statement did not criticize Luxon or reference his leadership bid.
Meanwhile, Luxon’s political opponents lambasted him and his party.
