New Zealand First leader Winston Peters will address a crowd in Auckland today as his party prepares campaign policy and fresh candidates in a bid to win over voters in November’s election.

Peters’ speech will be livestreamed at the top of this article from around 2pm.

His appearance at Trusts Arena in West Auckland comes as he surges in the polls and closes in on National leader Christopher Luxon in the preferred Prime Minister ranking.

Although his party dropped one percentage point to 14% in the latest Talbot Mills Research survey, Peters has continued to rise in the preferred Prime Minister rankings, reaching 17%, only three points behind National leader Christopher Luxon, who is on 20%.

Peters’ office recently released emails to the Herald showing Luxon wanted to shift the Government’s position to show “explicit public support” for the US-led war in Iran, days after it broke out.

These emails showed Luxon was talked out of this position by Peters and staff in Peters’ office. The release of the email under the Official Information Act to the Herald prompted Luxon to hold crisis talks with the NZ First leader in the Beehive.

A spokesman for Luxon responded to the Herald, after the meeting, saying the emails “mischaracterise the PM’s position”.

Peters’ speech comes only days before the release of the Government’s Budget. Last week, Peters revealed what he called a “Budget leak” while speaking with Newstalk ZB’s Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive and confirmed the fees-free university scheme would be scrapped.

NZ First recently announced former All Blacks captain Taine Randell as a candidate in the election. Randell will stand in the Tukituki electorate.

Julia Gabel is a Wellington-based political reporter. She joined the Herald in 2020 and has most recently focused on data journalism.