Winston went full Winston this week.

In a seeming return to campaign mode, the New Zealand First leader has pulled out all the stops at his State of the Nation speech last Sunday.

Attacks on the media: Check.

Railing against immigration: Check.

Peppering the word ‘woke’ into his speech: Check.

It was, to use a beltway cleché, classic Winston.

But things escalated to a whole other level when he compared the previous Government’s record on race relations to that of Nazi Germany.

The comments prompted Chris Hipkins to liken Peters to a drunk uncle at a wedding.

And, as expected with such an inflammatory line, it was picked up by all news media at the speech in Palmerston North.

Despite Peters’ scoffing and complaining – this was no doubt part of his plan.

Each day this week there was a new development in the story which made it impossible for reporters to ignore.

Things reached peak absurdity on Wednesday when – seconds after Prime Minister Chris Luxon urged all political leaders to “grow up” when it comes to the use of their language – Peters barged his way through the press pack playing Chumbawamba’s Tubthumping [I get knocked down, but I get up again].

To a casual observer, Peters’ actions this week would appear chaotic, random and bizarre.

But Peters’ actions are not targeted at a casual observer.

Winston has been in politics since 1979 and has been re-elected fifteen times since.

He served as Deputy Prime Minister twice and has held the balance of power, effectively choosing the Government, at least three times.

He has more campaign experience than anyone else in the House by far and will go down in history as New Zealand’s most successful politician.

In short, he knows what he’s doing.

New Zealand’s a long way out from the next election but Peters has already begun his 2026 campaign.

As good of a record Peters has in getting into Parliament, his record is a lot patchier when it comes to staying in power.

After a chaotic three-year stint in Government, New Zealand First’s vote shrunk from 13 percent in 1996, to 4.3 percent after the 1999 election.

His party was out of Parliament.

It was a similar story in 2020: After three years in Government, New Zealand First again failed to reach the 5 percent threshold.

Both times, New Zealand First lost touch with its base who punished them in the polls.

Peters will not be looking to make that mistake again.

Which is why he’s started his campaign early.

At his speech on Sunday, his supporters lapped up every word he uttered around the media.

It’s the same people who supported his claims that the media had been bribed by the $55 million public interest journalism fund.

Since the comments, his party’s climbed to 7.4 percent in the polls while bedfellows Act has seen its support fall.

He launched similar attacks during the 2023 campaign and that saw him grow his support from roughly 2 percent to 6 percent.

For Peters, the fourth estate is more than a convenient punching bag; somewhat ironically New Zealand’s media is his cash cow.

Which is why it’s no surprise he’s taken a number of pages out of his own playbook.

First, say something outrageous: “I've seen that sort of philosophy before. I saw it in Nazi Germany, we all did”. Check.

Second, dig your heels in and don’t back down and NEVER apologies. Peters did numerous interviews this week and didn’t give an inch. Check.

Third, stay in the news cycle. Queue Chumbawamba’s Tubthumping again. Check.

The end result: An almost non-stop parade of coverage where Peters gets near unfiltered access to say the exact things that will gain him more support.

Expect to see his support grow the next time poll numbers are released.

Peters has proved time and time again he doesn’t need a cast of thousands of officials and advisors to get traction with the public.

All he needs is that trademark Chesher Cat grin, and a metric tonne of stubbornness

All Winston has to do, is go full Winston.