Clark conducts first round of talks 

The scene for the post election drama moved to Wellington on Monday as Helen Clark held meetings with the minor parties as she tries to form a government.

Clark says although there is a lot of focus on which parties Labour could form a coalition with, a range of relationships are possible, including support on supply and confidence and parties abstaining on those votes.

"I'm not saying it's not complex, of course it's complex but I believe that all parties involved are desirous of seeing a three year term of parliament," says Clark.

The Labour leader has sat down with the Greens, United Future and the Maori Party.

Before the election Clark was clear about the status of the Maori Party, saying they would be the last cab off the rank in coalition talks. But the knife-edge result has levelled the playing field.

"I have said there are five cabs on the rank and we are in the process of talking to all of them."

Maori Party co-leader Tariana Turia says her party is definitely not going to get everything they want.

"But we certainly want to give our people the opportunity to say what they do want," says Turia.

The party says it is too soon to say what if any role it will play in the next government. Turia says the talks covered the range of options for forming a Labour-led government and policy was not discussed.

The Green Party leadership emerged from its first post-election talks with Labour saying the meeting was "constructive and cordial". The leaders of the two parties met for about 45 minutes for exploratory talks about forming a government.

After two terms in support of Labour the Greens want seats at the cabinet table.

Greens co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons has previously made it clear her party wants to be inside government this time around, but after the meeting on Monday was not commenting on the chances of the Greens making it into cabinet other than to say it is one of the options on the table.

Helen Clark has indicated that small parties may have to stay out - if only for their own good.

"It is a genuine strategic choice for a small party as to whether to come into government when the government is inevitably branded by the larger party."

United Future leader Peter Dunne, who was also on the Prime Minister's invitation list on Monday, appears to have softened his stance on whether his party could support a Labour-Greens coalition government.

Dunne has previously said United Future could not support a Labour-Greens government, with Green cabinet ministers.

After his meeting with Clark he repeated that United Future doesn't want to be part of a coalition with the Greens around the cabinet table.

However, he said he would not rule out the possibility that it could reach a supply and confidence agreement with such a government.

Dunne says the meeting with Clark was a very broad discussion about where the land lies at the moment.

New Zealand First with seven MPs may also be a part of any coalition deal and Clark is due to talk to party leader Winston Peters in the next couple of days.

Clark also sees no reason to vary the formula of having a coalition with the Progressives one remaining MP - leader Jim Anderton

Some of National's team is also back in Wellington, but leader Don Brash is staying in Auckland and staying hopeful.

"The special votes will be important. They will decide in particular, which of the two major parties is the larger and they will decide whether the Greens are in parliament or not," says Brash.

If the Greens fall below the 5% threshold after the special votes are counted they would be out of parliament because they don't have an electorate seat.

But that would be defying history as the special votes tend to favour the centre-left and they especially tend to favour the Greens.