Greymouth singer wins X factor

Jackie Thomas has won the X Factor, beating Whenua Patuwai.

It was also revealed last night that the Greymouth 22-year-old was the top contestant for seven out of the 10 weeks.

Jackie's mentor, UK singer Daniel Bedingfield, praised his protege.

"She sounds incredible," he said.

"Her voice is amazing and I believe it when she sings, you see it in her eyes she's a soulful singer, it's amazing."

Palmerston North singer/songwriter Benny Tipene, 23, left the show first tonight after receiving the lowest share of the vote.

That left Thomas and Christchurch teenager Patuwai to sing off for the title of X Factor champion.

The pair performed singles written for them to release should they win.

But the final was not smooth sailing as fans struggled to vote for their favourite contestant.

Viewers reacted angrily saying they were having trouble voting, leaving TV3 to apologise via the show's Twitter page.

"Sorry. We have had an unprecedented response and are now experiencing a few technical difficulties."

The final was decided entirely by fan vote.

Earlier, the show opened with all 13 finalists returning to the stage to perform a rendition of Daft Punk's Get Lucky.

Thomas, Tipene and Patuwai then delivered versions of the audition songs that won them their first 'yes' votes from judges.

Patuwai received a rapturous ovation for his rendition of soul classic A Change is Gonna Come.

Australian pop star Guy Sebastian performed his new single Get Along before the eliminations began.

Thomas had a rocky road to the final.

She impressed judges with her version of Bon Iver's Skinny Love in the auditions but was dumped from the show after a poor performance in the bootcamp phase of the competition.

Bedingfield made a special request for her to return to the competition after a public outcry over her ejection and she never faced elimination again.

Patuwai and Tipene both braved elimination on their way to the final.

Tipene was saved by judges after being dropped into the bottom two with Tom Batchelor midway through the competition.

He went on to become the only act to perform an original song on the show.

Patuwai was lucky to stay in the competition after judges sent his elimination contest with Christchurch 14-year-old Cassie Henderson to deadlock.

He won out with a bigger share of the fan vote.

X Factor

Began: April 21

Ratings: An average of 434,200 viewers aged 5 plus per episode

Finalists: 13

First elimination: Eden Roberts

Most controversial elimination: Taye Williams over L.O.V.E

Winner: Jackie Thomas

HOL

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