Taking the pulse

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters struck his best form of the election campaign yesterday, a master stroke that has worked so well in the past.

It was easy to get distracted on the journey through the vast Taranaki-King Country electorate yesterday in the pursuit of the heartbeat of the 2011 election campaign.

It must be an election campaign when you walk into a crowded dining room at the Canterbury Jockey Club on Saturday and New Zealand First leader Winston Peters catches your eye with a hearty wave.

National Party leader John Key showed yesterday he is a fast learner when he set off early from Auckland on a campaign tour that stretched from Auckland, Napier, Taupo, Nelson and Christchurch before heading back to Auckland.

Travelling by rail was the obvious choice to make when deciding to meet Green Party co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons for lunch in Auckland yesterday.

Hats, handbags, high heels and of course horses were dominant features at the Ellerslie race meeting yesterday, when Taking the Pulse made a visit to the birdcage and beyond.

Botany voters can't go wrong. Vote Kenneth Wang [and] get Wang + Wong.

The campaign trail in Auckland during the weekend was one of contrasts.

Labour MP Mark Burton is one of Parliament's nice guys, always friendly and with a ready smile.

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters faces a voter backlash in Tauranga that could prove terminal unless his party squeaks across the 5% threshold and he can return to Parliament through the party vote.