On election day, the New Zealand Party failed to win any seats. New Zealand then used the plurality voting system, which made it hard for third parties to gain representation in Parliament. The party gained second place in several electorates, and gained third place in many more. However, its votes were dispersed, rather than concentrated in any one area, so it was unable to enter Parliament. In total, the New Zealand Party gained 12.2% of the vote, putting it in third place. The Social Credit Party, although winning only 7.6% of the vote, won two seats, probably as the result of having specifically focused its attention on them since the 1950s.