New Zealand would be governed by the Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party if an unofficial poll held by a Queenstown pie merchant had been anything to go by.
The people have spoken, and indeed, eaten. Eat Humble Pie co-owner Mike Burke invited Wakatipu voters to buy the pastry of their choice from a selection adorned with the logo and colours of the main political parties by baker Panadda "Beau" Vorasinsiri.
Mr Burke said on Friday there had been a strong turnout of pie voters during the three-day test of tastes. Protection of the environment was the issue most on their minds, he said.
The Legalise Cannabis Party won by a landslide with six pies sold. However, the poll may have been skewed by the vegetarian demographic as the Legalise Cannabis pies were meat-free.
"I put it down to the extra mushroom content in the pie itself," Mr Burke said.
Customers at the Camp St kiosk continued to lean to the left when they bought four Labour Party pies and four Green Party pies. This brought the Greens firmly into the mainstream and put them and Labour level-pegging with the National Party at four pies sold.
Mr Burke thought this was perhaps because his customers were "more working class, tradesmen, hotel workers, who perhaps fall into line with Labour's minimum wage policy".
Mr Burke said Act New Zealand and New Zealand First both barely made the cut, with only one pie sold each.
"Act riled most of my customers and was the least favourable. Too Brash by half."
