New Zealand Public Party

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New Zealand Public Party was a short-lived political party in New Zealand led by Billy Te Kahika. It was founded on 11 June 2020 and dissolved on 19 February 2021. The party described itself as right-wing and anti-globalist and had no MPs. It joined with Advance New Zealand as a component party to contest the 2020 general election. The Public Party won about 1% of the party vote and did not win any seats, with Te Kahika contesting Te Tai Tokerau and Jenny Brown standing in East Coast.

After the election the party split from Advance NZ amid a bitter feud. Its party secretary and director resigned in January 2021. The group briefly renamed itself the New Zealand Freedom Party before Te Kahika dissolved it in February 2021 to focus on activism. The party promoted conspiracy theories, opposed the United Nations, 5G, 1080 poison, fluoridation, and electromagnets, and spread misinformation about COVID-19. It called for repealing the COVID-19 Public Health Response Act 2020.

There were several controversies, including a video on vaccine mandates criticized as misleading, harassment claims involving the Outdoors Party, and investigations by the Electoral Commission into party donations. The party tried to form alliances with Vision NZ and the New Zealand Outdoors Party but none succeeded. By late 2020 it was no longer listed as a component party of Advance NZ, and in February 2021 it was dissolved, with Te Kahika continuing anti-establishment activism online.