51st New Zealand Parliament

51st Parliament of New Zealand
← 50th Parliament 52nd Parliament →
Parliament House, Wellington
Overview
Legislative body	New Zealand Parliament
Term	20 October 2014 – 18 August 2017
Election	2014 New Zealand general election
Government	Fifth National Government
House of Representatives
Members	121
Speaker of the House	David Carter
Leader of the House	Simon Bridges — Gerry Brownlee until 2 May 2017
Prime Minister	Bill English — John Key until 12 December 2016
Leader of the Opposition	Jacinda Ardern — Andrew Little until 1 August 2017
Sovereign
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Governor-General	Patsy Reddy from 28 September 2016 — Jerry Mateparae until 31 August 2016

The 51st New Zealand Parliament was elected at the 2014 general election. This Parliament consists of 121 members (120 seats plus one overhang seat) and was in place from September 2014 until August 2017, followed by the 2017 New Zealand general election. Following the final vote count John Key was able to continue to lead the Fifth National Government.

The Parliament was elected using a mixed-member proportional representation (MMP) voting system. Members of Parliament (MPs) represent 71 geographical electorates: 16 in the South Island, 48 in the North Island and 7 Māori electorates. The remaining members were elected from party lists using the Sainte-Laguë method to realise proportionality. The number of geographical electorates was increased from 70 at the previous election, to account for New Zealand's increasing population.^[1]