While outgoing prime minister Helen Clark made her speech of concession and resignation as Labour leader on nationwide television, the 1000 or so National Party supporters in Auckland's Sky Tower Convention Centre booed and jeered.
The image of defeated Auckland Central MP Judith Tizard was greeted with derisory calls and name calling, something that had marked the evening.
The jeers turned to cheers as Mr Key made his way to the stage accompanied by a media scrum of camera crews and photographers.
Mr Key thanked Miss Clark for her gracious concession, something which sparked a few catcalls.
However, Mr Key held up his arms to quieten his supporters and seemed to speak from the heart when he said that although he and Miss Clark had different views about what policies were best for New Zealand, they both shared the love of the country.
"I admired her dedication to the job, her ferocious work ethic and her desire to make New Zealand a better country. As prime minister, you ensured our small voice was heard on the international stage and on behalf of us all, I thank you," Mr Key said to rousing cheers.
Mr Key said to his supporters, from wide ethnic backgrounds, that: "I can't tell you how good it is to be here. New Zealanders have spoken and in their hundreds of thousands, they have voted for change. I can tell you there will be a new National-led government in New Zealand.
"I thank every New Zealander who cast their vote for the National Party. I thank you for your support and I thank you for your trust."
This was a time for working together and having everyone pulling in the same direction as the country faced some difficult challenges.
"Whether you voted for National or not, tonight you have my pledge that I will lead a government that serves the interests of all New Zealanders. It will be a government which values individual achievement and a government that supports those who can't support themselves. That is the government we will all be part of."
In an attempt to mirror actions of US president-elect Barack Obama, Mr Key thanked his wife Bronagh and their children for their support during the election campaign.
"The bad news is that no puppy is coming," he said to some light-hearted booing. "OK, maybe I'll reconsider the puppy. The cat won't like it but we will work through it."
At that, the crowd went wild. Mr Key had entered to the beating of Polynesian drums and the crowd was swelled by the arrival of a large contingent of Indian supporters. Young Indian men, in particular, were the most enthusiastic of the evening, cheering, clapping, dancing and talking non-stop on mobile phones.
Asked why they supported National so enthusiastically, Mirandha Singh (24) said law and order policies, removing red tape from small businesses and tax were big issues for family-owned businesses in Auckland. National gave the best options.
It was the Indian, Asian and Polynesian supporters who proved the most enthusiastic of the night. Traditional National Party supporters young and old proved they remained conservative at heart as they stood by and watched the young members of other ethnic communities party on into the night.
Campaign chairman and likely cabinet minister Steven Joyce was the busiest official of the night. However, he did not get a chance to address the crowd as when he was about to take the podium, Mr Key arrived.
The diplomatic protection service personnel were in full force during the night, even before Mr Key's arrival. An announcement that two unattended handbags were going to be removed indicated the level of security in place. Bomb checks had been carried out on the venue, which could only be entered with identification.
When Mr Key arrived, he was led in by two service members who linked arms around him to protect him from the wellwishers. Confusion reigned when Mr Key headed for his first live television interview of the night in the wrong direction. Things became even more confused when Mr Key changed direction towards the other corner of the room. Although Mr Key remained unfazed, his own staff members and the protection squad members were nowhere near as relaxed.
When he moved to a media stand-up interview in the corridor of the convention centre, Mr Key was surrounded by protection squad members who linked arms to keep camera crews and wellwishers away.
It was something not seen by this reporter since a National Party conference in Wellington when the late Sir Robert Muldoon was prime minister. There, conference delegates and MPs ran a gauntlet of protesters held back by lines of police.
National Party prime ministers have, in the past, generated a great deal of hostility which sometimes resulted in mass protests.
Mr Key's inclusive style will be needed to prevent him becoming a victim of a National Party tradition.
