23rd New Zealand Parliament
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The 23rd New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. It was elected at the 1928 general election in November of that year.
1928 general election
The 1928 general election was held on Tuesday, 13 November in the Māori electorates and on Wednesday, 14 November in the general electorates, respectively.[1] A total of 80 MPs were elected; 47 represented North Island electorates, 29 represented South Island electorates, and the remaining four represented Māori electorates.[2] 844,633 voters were enrolled and the official turnout at the election was 88.1%.[1]
Electoral boundaries
Sessions
The 23rd Parliament sat for five sessions (there were two sessions in 1931), and was prorogued on 12 November 1931.[3]
| Session | Opened | Adjouned |
|---|---|---|
| first | 4 December 1928 | 14 December 1928 |
| second | 27 June 1929 | 9 November 1929 |
| third | 26 June 1930 | 25 October 1930 |
| fourth | 11 March 1931 | 28 April 1931 |
| fifth | 25 June 1931 | 11 November 1931 |
Party standings
Start of Parliament
| Party | Leader(s) | Seats at start | |
| United Party | Sir Joseph Ward | 27 | |
| Reform Party | Gordon Coates | 27 | |
| Labour Party | Harry Holland | 19 | |
| Country Party | Harold Rushworth | 1 | |
| Independents | 6 | ||
End of Parliament
| Party | Leader(s) | Seats at end | |
| Reform Party | Gordon Coates | 27 | |
| United Party | Sir Joseph Ward | 26 | |
| Labour Party | Harry Holland | 20 | |
| Country Party | Harold Rushworth | 1 | |
| Independents | 6 | ||
Ministries
The Coates Ministry led by Gordon Coates of the Reform Party had come to power in May 1925.[4] The Reform Party lost the 1928 election, suffering a humiliating defeat, dropping from 55 seats in 1925 to 28 only three years later. Parliament was called shortly after the election, Coates lost a no confidence vote and resigned as Prime Minister.[5]
Joseph Ward formed the second Ward Ministry on 10 December 1928 as leader of the United Party, a successor of the Liberal Party.[6][7] Ward was an unwell man at this stage in life and suffered several heart attacks. In May 1930, he was pressured by his colleagues to resign as Prime Minister.[7]
Ward was succeeded by George Forbes, again of the United Party. The Forbes Ministry was in place until September 1931. During the difficult times of the Great Depression, Forbes wanted to form a grand coalition with the Labour Party and the Reform Party. Labour refused, but Reform went into a coalition government with United from September 1931.[8]
Members
Initial MPs
Key
United Reform Labour Country Party Liberal-Labour Ratana Independent
By-elections during 23rd Parliament
There were a number of changes during the term of the 23rd Parliament.
| Electorate and by-election | Date | Incumbent | Cause | Winner | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bay of Islands | 1929 | 10 April[19] | Harold Rushworth | Election declared void | Harold Rushworth | ||
| Hutt | 1929 | 18 December[20] | Thomas Wilford | Resignation | Walter Nash | ||
| Parnell | 1930 | 7 May[21] | Harry Jenkins | Resignation | Bill Endean | ||
| Invercargill | 1930 | 13 August[22] | Joseph Ward | Death | Vincent Ward | ||
| Waipawa | 1930 | 8 October[23] | George Hunter | Death | Albert Jull | ||
| Western Maori | 1930 | 8 October[24] | Māui Pōmare | Death | Taite Te Tomo | ||
| Hauraki | 1931 | 27 May[25] | Arthur Hall | Death | Walter Massey | ||
Notes
- 1 2 "General elections 1853–2005 - dates & turnout". Elections New Zealand. Archived from the original on 27 May 2010. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 90.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 69.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, pp. 46–47.
- ↑ Bassett, Michael. "Coates, Joseph Gordon 1878–1943". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 47.
- 1 2 Bassett, Michael. "Ward, Joseph George 1856–1930". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
- ↑ Gardner, W. J. "Forbes, George William - Biography". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 11 December 2011.
- ↑ Skinner 1929, pp. 1–7.
- ↑ "Electoral Notices". The Press. LXIV (19454). 30 October 1928. p. 15. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
- ↑ "Robertson, Dugald Macdonald, fl 1909-1971 : Papers". National Library of New Zealand. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
- 1 2 "Christchurch Nominations". The Press. LXIV (19451). 26 October 1928. p. 14. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
- ↑ "Straight Grained". New Zealand Truth (1197). 8 November 1928. p. 6. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
- ↑ "Labour's Candidates". Maoriland Worker. 12 (299). 22 November 1922. p. 12. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
- ↑ "Election Candidates". The New Zealand Herald. LXV (19939). 7 May 1928. p. 10. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
- ↑ "Death in Action". The New Zealand Herald. LXXVIII (23984). 6 June 1941. p. 9. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ↑ "Patea". The Evening Post. CVI (85). 19 October 1928. p. 11. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
- ↑ "Personal Items". The Evening Post. CIX (72). 26 March 1930. p. 13. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 136.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 128.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 104.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 146.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 117.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 144.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 125.
References
- Scholefield, Guy (1950) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 (3rd ed.). Wellington: Govt. Printer.
- Skinner, W. A. G. (1929). The General Election, 1928. Government Printer. Retrieved 4 December 2013.