Former National Party president Sue Wood urges new MPs to reconnect with voters

An open letter to the National Party from its former president has implored the caucus, entirely made up of electorate MPs, to reconnect with its voters following a "lacklustre" campaign.In the letter, Sue Wood congratulated the caucus - all of whom are electorate MPs - for campaigns focused on "positive achievements" rather than being "slightly better than the 'other lot'"."You were not elected by the party board. You succeeded despite - not by virtue of - the National Party's lacklustre nationwide campaign."Wood said they outperformed the party vote, making them the "masters of the party's future"."List MPs are beholden to the leader and the board that put them there. There are none left now."While political discipline is important, your decisions must give a voice to your constituents' feedback. Debate those decisions in caucus and find a unified position."Wood served as National Party president from 1982 to 1986, the youngest and first woman to hold the position, while Robert Muldoon was leader of the party.Wood's letter follows a mixed result for National; it remains the largest party in Parliament, holding 42 seats currently, but a low party vote share means it cannot bring in any MPs off the list.Brownlee told RNZ on Monday that vote-splitting campaigns by some right-wing groups had not "worked as it was supposed to" and the result could encourage voters to go back to "First Past The Post again".The outgoing National MP for Banks Peninsula, Vanessa Weenink, said on Tuesday that her party had pulled "too far to the right" and voters had told her through the campaign that they "hate" National.Wood told MPs to restore the party's "democratic process for the party structure"."The drift into central control can override the wishes of the membership and their community. Achieving high office in the Party should require hard work on the hustings."The path to Parliament should be through success in the community and party organisation - not a job in the Beehive."She said the party's future resided with its "organisational wing" and the party once had a "huge membership base" to which it was beholden."Political parties are bigger than one person. Encourage debate; your colleagues may disagree with you, but they remain your colleagues."She urged them to reconnect with the community and renew its faith in the party."With a stronger, wider local party, you will build a bridge to a modern, diverse New Zealand that has felt overlooked by our strategists."Step deliberately outside traditional comfort zones to show through your actions that National remains a broad church, representing rural and urban, liberal and conservative, and the myriad of cultures that proudly call this country home." she said.National and Wood have been approached for comment.