New Zealand election too close to call as votes are counted

New Zealand's election was too close to call on Saturday, with the country's two main parties running almost level as votes were counted. Early results after polls closed showed the race was tight, and later counts kept it that way.

With more than 95% of votes counted, the two main parties were separated by fewer than 4,000 votes. The count had reached about half of the votes by mid-afternoon, when the two main parties were still neck-and-neck.

More than half of New Zealand's voters cast early ballots before election day, in a race that was tightly contested from the start. On the night, the country's strict election-day laws on political reporting were in force.

By the early hours of Sunday IST, the government held a narrow lead in the poll. The lead was small, and the final margin has not been confirmed.

Official results are not expected until later this month. They will be final only once special votes have been counted. Until then, the winner of the close race has not been declared, and the final seat balance is not yet known.