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John Key and Phil Goff - Source: ONE News -
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The popularity of Prime Minister John Key and National has soared to record highs three months out from the election.
The latest ONE News Colmar Brunton poll predicts a crushing defeat for Labour on November 26 and puts more pressure on Phil Goff's leadership.
National's support is higher than it has been all year at 56%. Labour is up 3% but only to 30%.
The Greens have dropped back to 6%. New Zealand First is at 2.3%, and Act is down to 1.7%. The Maori Party (1.4%), the Mana Party (0.9%) and United Future (0.5%) are barely registering.
National would have 69 seats under this scenario. With four seats added by the Maori Party, two from Act and one from United Future, the centre right would completely dominate Parliament.
The opposition ranks would be thin with just 37 Labour MPs, eight Green MPs and one from the Mana Party.
National has been pushing welfare reform but has been under pressure over employment numbers.
"We've created 45,000 jobs over the last 12 months, we're on track on to create another 170,000 jobs," Key said recently.
When it comes to the country's top job, it is no contest.
Key gets his highest ever preferred prime minister ranking in the poll, at 57%, up 3%.
Goff is nearly 50 points behind with just 8% of respondents wanting him to lead the country.
When it comes to the economy, America's credit rating downgrade appears to have pushed business confidence in New Zealand down.
Optimism about the economy has slipped back, with 49% saying that things will get better over the next year and 31% thinking things will get worse.
ONE News political editor Guyon Espiner says things can't really get any worse for Goff.
Espiner says Labour is fast running out of time, with the Rugby World Cup about to swamp the media, and after that the party really only has the four weeks of November to try and make up some ground over National which has a very commanding lead.
He says perhaps the greatest danger for Key is the perception of complacency - the idea that a National victory is inevitable.
