Douglas' neoliberal economic policies, dubbed Rogernomics, transformed New Zealand's economy from a protectionist one into a free market through extensive deregulation.

[27] According to former party leader Rodney Hide, ACT's values are "individual freedom, personal responsibility, doing the best for our natural environment and for smaller, smarter government in its goals of a prosperous economy, a strong society, and a quality of life that is the envy of the world".

[28] ACT states that it adheres to classical-liberal and small (or limited) government principles coupled with what the party considers as a high regard for individual freedom and personal responsibility.

[citation needed] ACT's platform featured conservative populist policies under former leaders Richard Prebble (in office: 1996–2004) and Rodney Hide (2004–2011).

Under leader Rodney Hide, ACT New Zealand had primarily focused on two main policy areas: taxation and crime (law-and-order issues).

Party leader, David Seymour, wants to reintroduce the "three strikes law" (repealed in 2022 by the Labour Government) and to impose three-year prison sentences—without parole—on anyone who commits three burglaries.

[48] ACT advocates repealing New Zealand's 2019 firearms legislation, and taking a "tougher" stance on criminals who repeatedly offend and on those found guilty of violent crimes, while also supporting rehabilitation programs.

[49] In September 2022, the ACT Party proposed fitting ankle bracelets on young offenders aged between 11 and 14 to combat juvenile crime, particularly ram-raiding.

[50][51] In response, Police Minister Chris Hipkins stated that the Labour Government was not considering the use of ankle bracelets for young offenders but would keep "all options on the table".

[53] New Zealand rugby-league player Sir Graham Lowe criticised the ankle-bracelet policy, while Waikato retailer Ash Parmer supported it.

[67] ACT's proposed referendum and law would affect co-governance arrangements at several Crown Research Institutes, state-owned enterprises and healthcare providers such as Te Aka Whai Ora (the Māori Health Authority).

[68] Māori Party co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and Professor Linda Tuhiwai Smith described ACT's proposed co-governance referendum and policies as being motivated by racism and reflecting a Pākehā unwillingness to share power.

Similarly, Waikato leader Rahui Papa claimed that ACT's co-governance policies clashed with the second and third articles of the treaty which (he argued) guaranteed Māori participation in the social sector.

which proposed a new Treaty Principles Act that would end the focus on partnership between Māori and the Crown and interpret "tino rangatiratanga" solely as property rights.

As part of ACT's non-racial (colour-blind) policies, its social-development spokesperson Karen Chhour advocated the abolition of Te Aka Whai Ora.

[69] Following the 2023 election and the formation of a National-led coalition government, ACT embarked on a public information campaign in early February 2024 to promote its Treaty Principles Bill.

This campaign includes the creation of a new website called "treaty.nz," which has a Questions and Answers section outlining the party's approach to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and a video featuring Seymour.

[74] ACT placed Chris Baillie fourth on its party list of candidates in the 2020 election; he has received criticism over his views on climate change,[75] and been labelled a climate-change sceptic.

He was largely critical of the party, saying: "ACT have been very outspoken about wanting to go hard to repeal a lot of climate change legislation, and I haven't seen much from New Zealand First, mainly just silence."

The new electoral system gave smaller groups a much better chance of entering Parliament, and encouraged the Association to transform into a political party and contest elections.

[94] In the 2008 New Zealand general election, ACT fielded 61 list candidates, starting with Rodney Hide, Heather Roy, Sir Roger Douglas, John Boscawen, David Garrett and Hilary Calvert.

Throughout 2009, there had been at least one reported ACT caucus coup attempt against Hide's leadership, believed to have been led by Deputy Leader Heather Roy and Roger Douglas.

The Fifth National Government of New Zealand had ACT support as well as that of United Future and the Māori Party, providing the coalition with confidence and supply.

In the September 2014 general election, Seymour won his seat, and ACT moved from seventh to sixth place, despite a decline in their share of the popular vote.

[107][108] Wang resigned as deputy leader on 9 July 2017, the same day ACT released its party list; Beth Houlbrooke was announced as his replacement.

[39] In late April 2021, the ACT party sponsored motion asking the New Zealand Parliament to debate and vote on the issue of human rights abuses against the Uyghur ethnic minority community in China's Xinjiang province.

[115] In early May, the incumbent Labour Party revised the motion to raise concerns about human rights abuses in Xinjiang but omitting the term genocide, which was subsequently adopted by the New Zealand Parliament on 5 May.

Opposition to the bill included criticism from Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, who accused Seymour of deliberately trying to divide New Zealand, and outgoing Labour MP Kelvin Davis, who stated that his party will continue to oppose the "Pākehā Government spiders".

[131] On 7 June 2024, Stuff journalist Tova O'Brien reported that allegations of intimidation, unfair treatment of women and a "trainwreck campaign" within the ACT party had led six staff members and volunteers to resign following the 2023 general election.

In his speech, Seymour said that the party's support had grown by 1,000 percent in the past five years and set out a 15% voter target for the 2026 general election.