Moore declined any portfolios offered to him by Clark when she assembled her shadow cabinet, opting to sit on the backbench instead, frequently sniping at Clark in the house. After the 1993 referendum to adopt mixed-member proportional representation (MMP) Moore considered forming a break-away party, the New Zealand Democratic Coalition, for the 1996 MMP election, but then decided against it. He received countless letters in support of a new party, but despite his ousting as leader, he felt too much affinity to the Labour Party to ever leave it. He won his seat in the 1996 election, obtaining more than twice as many votes as the next-highest candidate, National's Jim Gerard.