United Future New Zealand
Current United Future logo
United Future New Zealand is a political party in the New Zealand parliament with eight MPs, seven MMP list MPs, and one electorate MP, leader Peter Dunne.
United Future was formed to contest the 2002 election from the merger of liberal centrist party United New Zealand and Christian conservative party Future New Zealand. The MPs were elected in an astonishing last-week election turn around that saw votes lost by both the Labour and Green parties, who were engaged in a public squabble over genetic engineering.
Some cynical commentators might say the merger was more of a take over, with the (arguably unelectable fundamentalist) Christian Party, which had previously failed to reach the five per cent MMP threshold, seeking an entry into Parliament via the security of Peter Dunne's electorate seat. In the 1999 election United gained 0.5% of the vote but Peter Dunne won his electorate seat, while Future gained 1.1% of the vote.