Law and formal institutional records
Typical material: Legislation, court decisions, Electoral Commission material and parliamentary records
Used to: Confirm legal rules, election results, parliamentary status and formal procedure.
Methodology: How every political claim is checked
Party promises, observed events, official findings and disputes are recorded separately. Political ideology is not used as a test of truth.
Four checks for every policy claim
A named actor
The text identifies who proposed, passed, opposed or assessed something instead of relying on vague attribution.
A direct source
Promises link to party publications. Outcomes link to independent official evidence where available.
A date
Publication, implementation or verification dates prevent an old manifesto from being presented as a current promise.
A claim type
Election promises, party positions, enacted law, historical records and official findings remain distinct.
Source priority
Independent official outcome evidence
Typical material: The Treasury, Stats NZ, the Auditor-General, the Ombudsman and formal inquiries
Used to: Check implementation, public spending, measured outcomes and official findings.
First-party political material
Typical material: Manifestos, policy pages, media releases, speeches and party constitutions
Used to: State accurately what a party promised and how it describes its position.
Accountable reporting and research
Typical material: Named reporting with editorial responsibility and links to original material
Used to: Add background and disputed context when primary material is incomplete, without replacing available official sources.
How government achievements and failures are described
PartyMap does not apply a simple success or failure label. Important events should show the policy goal, what changed, measurable results, official review and major criticism where those materials exist.
When evidence conflicts, the sources remain separate and the relevant measure and time period are stated. When no reliable outcome evidence exists, PartyMap records the promise without inferring effectiveness.
Why governing parties have more independent records
The Auditor-General, Ombudsman, Royal Commissions and other oversight bodies mainly review public agencies, ministerial decisions and public spending. Governing parties therefore accumulate more independent assessment, while opposition parties have more policy statements, votes and internal events.
PartyMap does not manufacture controversy to equalise page length and does not automatically assign an agency failure to a political party. Evidence gaps are shown directly.
Equal coverage rules
- Every currently registered party has its own page and the same core sections.
- Page length follows verified material, not polling or seat count.
- Controversial positions are summarised accurately and labelled as party positions.
- Key pages show the last verification date and retain a corrections record.
Current limits
The current edition prioritises 2026 policies and foundational timelines. Full outcome assessments across previous governments are still being expanded where multi-year statistics and official audits are required.
Portraits are published only when reuse permission is clear. Initials are used when permission has not been confirmed.