New Zealanders have rejected Three Waters and housing intensification with council votes, ACT's David Seymour says

Labour should've gotten a serious wake-up call after Saturday's local government election results, ACT's leader David Seymour says.

The Government "has divided New Zealanders" with the likes of Three Waters and the results showed Kiwis rejected it, Seymour said. 

Wayne Brown, centre-right, won Auckland's Mayoralty on Saturday by a convincing margin over Labour-endorsed Efeso Collins.

Brown received about 50,000 more votes than Collins. 

Dunedin now also has a centre-right Mayor - Jules Radich - who defeated incumbent Aaron Hawkins.

In Christchurch, Phil Mauger defeated David Meates to replace nine-year Mayor Lianne Dalziel.

Tory Whanau well and truly won Wellington, beating incumbent Mayor Andy Foster and Labour-endorsed Paul Eagle.

And, in Invercargill, 75-year-old Sir Tim Shadbolt was ousted by Deputy Mayor Nobby Clark after 24 years.

Seymour said ACT was "heartened" by the local election results.

David Seymour.
David Seymour. Photo credit: AM Early

"The swing to the right across the country at the local body elections should be a wake-up call to the Labour Government," he said. 

"New Zealanders have rejected Three Waters and housing intensification."

Seymour said ACT had asked questions of Labour and National's cross-party housing density standards from the get-go. 

Recently, the Christchurch City Council voted against the law - which new Mayor Mauger voted against as a councillor.

"We know there is a housing shortage but ACT has said from the get-go that National and Labour's housing deal was not the solution," Seymour said. "It won't deliver the houses it promised to a generation."

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Saturday she was keen to see how local Government voting could be improved, given only about 40 percent of the country turned out.

Ardern sent her congratulations to everyone elected and said the Government would continue working closely with local authorities.