Population during each prime minister's tenure

Every prime minister since 1991, ranked by how population changed from their first day in office. Politare shows what happened during a tenure; it does not claim the office-holder caused it.

#	Prime minister	In office	Total	Per year	Chart
1	Helen Clark	10 Dec 1999 – 19 Nov 2008	+11.1% 1999 → 2008	+1.2%/yr
2	John Key	19 Nov 2008 – 12 Dec 2016	+10.7% 2008 → 2016	+1.3%/yr
3	Jim Bolger	2 Nov 1990 – 8 Dec 1997 from 1991	+8.2% 1991 → 1997	+1.3%/yr
4	Jacinda Ardern	26 Oct 2017 – 25 Jan 2023	+5.6% 2017 → 2022	+1.1%/yr

Sorted by total, highest first. Every row is indexed to the last count complete before the first day in office ("from" marks a start that had to move because that count had no data, or because the period cut it); Levels are per cent changes, rates are differences in %; "per year" compounds levels and divides rates. Tenures with under 12 months, or under three observations, are left out. millions, mid-year · Stats NZ's estimated resident population via the World Bank (SP.POP.TOTL), at 30 June · New Zealand data · as of Jul 2026.