2 seek to become New Zealand's prime minister

The two contenders to be New Zealand's next prime minister:

___

HELEN CLARK:

The three-term Labour Party prime minister is a committed social democrat. Now 58, she has been prime minister since 1999.

Clark's administration has boosted economic growth, cut government debt and stacked up huge budget surpluses. But the economy slumped into recession in 2008 _ hit by global economic head winds, the credit crunch and a domestic downturn.

Clark opposed the U.S.-led war in Iraq but sent troops to help with reconstruction there and in Afghanistan, and held firm on anti-nuclear policies that prevent U.S. warships from entering New Zealand's ports.

She helped steer the country to a free trade agreement with China _ the first such deal between the emerging giant and a developed Western-style economy. And she has declared that New Zealand will be the world's first carbon-neutral society.

___

JOHN KEY:

The 47-year-old National Party leader is a former currency trader and multimillionaire who entered politics in 2002.

His "ordinary guy" style belies his determination to give New Zealand what he characterizes as a chance to draw a "line under the past ... and choose a fresh start."

Bought up in a state-owned house by his widowed mother, Key has spent most of his career out of the public eye, cloistered in currency trading rooms as he made his fortune.

Key glosses over his past as a money trader _ including stints in the United States, Singapore and elsewhere for Merrill Lynch _ before entering parliament in 2002.

He won his party's top post after it lost the last election in 2005, and has demonstrated he isn't afraid to speak his mind and make tough calls.

Described by critics as "Labour-lite," Key has forced the traditional center-right National Party into the political middle ground. As a result, the party has accepted Labour policies like the anti-nuclear law and the deployment of troops to Afghanistan.

Key says he wants to "rebalance" the economy, slash taxes, get tough with criminal gangs, ramp up spending on infrastructure and cut the bureaucracy.