Ross has claimed that the party was a centrist and anti-corruption movement designed to appeal to voters "in the middle"; however, their main policies represent the political fringe rather than centre.

Jami-Lee Ross had been a long-time stalwart for New Zealand's centre-right National Party, having been elected to the Manukau City Council in 2004 aged just 18, and later as a Member of Parliament for Botany at 25 in 2011.

[10] In a highly publicised falling out in 2018, Ross accused Bridges of corruption involving a $100,000 donation to the party, filing a false return, and falsifying the name of a donor to hide the identity.

[14][15] In a press conference on 16 October, Ross announced his intention to resign his seat and contest the resulting by-election as an Independent candidate.

[19][20] On 29 January 2020 the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) announced they had charged four people in relation to the claims made by Ross in 2018 around the NZ$100,000 donation.

[24][25] On 25 February, Ross and the other defendants appeared in court where they pleaded not guilty to the charges relating to the National Party donations.

[23][26][27] With Ross's case still ongoing in the Auckland District Court, he announced his intention to create his own political party in an April 2020 newsletter.

Initially, little was known about the party beyond its broadly centrist ethos and central issue of anti-corruption – in particular, opposition to the Chinese government's alleged influence on New Zealand.

Stuff also reported that Ross was asked to participate in a post-election coup to replace Te Kahika as leader of the Public Party, but said he had no interest in doing so.

[41] The New Zealand Public Party, which subscribes to many conspiracy theories,[42][43][44] is known for spreading misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic,[45][46] as well as opposition to 5G technology, 1080 poison and fluoridation.

[58][34] In late August, Advance posted a video claiming that the Government had passed legislation forcing New Zealanders to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

According to news outlet Agence France-Presse, the advertisement included footage from parliament video that had been edited mid-sentence to change the meaning of an MP's speech.

[63][64] In late September, Advance was excluded from the Newshub Nation multi-party leaders' debate scheduled for 3 October 2020, and co-leaders Ross and Te Kahika filed an urgent interlocutory injunction application at the Auckland High Court against MediaWorks.

[67] On 16 October, the Advertising Standards Authority upheld most of the complaints against the Advance NZ and New Zealand Public parties but withdrew one.

[72] The party's leaders organised a rally on 12 September 2020, in which a crowd of a few thousand protested against lockdowns and restrictions due to COVID-19, as well as the 5G cellphone network, vaccines, the government in general, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement.

[83] Journalist Tova O'Brien interviewed co-leader Jami-Lee Ross the day after the election, challenging his decision to "peddle misinformation".

She questioned his decision to join with Billy Te Kahika; Ross said that there was "a lot of growth" in support for his cause, to which O'Brien responded, "you sold your soul for political ambition”.

He refused to accept the election result and said he planned a tally of Advance voters to prove the official process was corrupt.

[85] In a later post, Te Kahika said that his figure of 200,000 was a mistake, but insisted that Advance NZ supporters' had written comments and drawn smiley faces on their voting forms, causing them to be disqualified.

[86] On 26 October, Te Kahika severed ties with Advance NZ after its election failure, stating that he had decided not to continue with the party.

Ross also announced that the party would be undergoing restructuring with plans being released at a special annual general meeting scheduled for early 2021.

[87][88] Te Kahika subsequently issued a statement claiming that he was not severing relations with Advance NZ but was rather restoring its "autonomy."

[89][90] In mid-March 2021, Advance NZ and the Covid-denial group "Voices for Freedom" assisted in marketing, fundraising, and distribution of a publication called The Real News.

[91] It consists entirely of COVID-19 misinformation, including conspiracy theories around vaccines and Bill Gates, generally repeating discredited internet-based sources.

[96] On 16 July 2021, Advance NZ issued a media release that it was withdrawing its registration as a political party with the Electoral Commission.

Advance NZ also stated that it would keep its ideas alive through the magazine The Real News, which has promoted conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccines.