Oamaru (New Zealand electorate)

Oamaru was a parliamentary electorate in the Otago region of New Zealand, during three periods between 1866 and 1978.

Population centres

The previous electoral redistribution was undertaken in 1875 for the 1875–76 election. In the six years since, New Zealand's European population had increased by 65%. In the 1881 electoral redistribution, the House of Representatives increased the number of European representatives to 91 (up from 84 since the 1875–76 election). The number of Māori electorates was held at four. The House further decided that electorates should not have more than one representative, which led to 35 new electorates being formed, and two electorates that had previously been abolished to be recreated, including Oamaru. This necessitated a major disruption to existing boundaries.[1]

Through an amendment in the Electoral Act in 1965, the number of electorates in the South Island was fixed at 25, an increase of one since the 1962 electoral redistribution.[2] It was accepted that through the more rapid population growth in the North Island, the number of its electorates would continue to increase, and to keep proportionality, three new electorates were allowed for in the 1967 electoral redistribution for the next election.[3] In the North Island, five electorates were newly created and one electorate was reconstituted while three electorates were abolished.[4] In the South Island, three electorates were newly created and one electorate (Oamaru) was reconstituted while three electorates were abolished.[5] The overall effect of the required changes was highly disruptive to existing electorates, with all but three electorates having their boundaries altered.[6] These changes came into effect with the 1969 election.[3]

The electorate was centred on the town of Oamaru.

History

The electorate existed three times: from 1866 to 1870, 1881 to 1957, and then from 1969 to 1978.[7][8]

Robert Campbell was the first representative, who served from the 1866 general election to 9 April 1869, when he resigned.[9] Charles Christie Graham won the resulting 1869 by-election; he retired at the end of the term in 1870.[10] The electorate was abolished at the end of the 4th Parliament.[7]

Samuel Shrimski won the 1881 general election in the reconstituted electorate against James Hassell, one of the pioneers of Oamaru.[11][12][13] In the 1884 general election, he defeated Viscount Reidhaven (who later became the Earl of Seafield when he succeeded his father).[14][15] Shrimski resigned on 28 March 1885 and was appointed to the Legislative Council on 15 May 1885.[16]

Thomas William Hislop won the 1885 by-election.[17] Hislop, William Henry Frith[18] and John Church contested the 1887 election and received 581, 345 and 100 votes, respectively.[19] Hislop represented the electorate until 5 September 1889, when he resigned. He won the resulting 1889 by-election, but was defeated by Thomas Young Duncan at the 1890 general election.[20][21]

Members of Parliament

The electorate was represented by twelve Members of Parliament.[8]

Key

  Independent     Liberal     Reform  
  United     Labour     National  
Election Winner
1866 election Robert Campbell
1869 by-election Charles Graham
(Electorate abolished 1870–1881, see Waitaki)
1881 election Samuel Shrimski
1884 election
1885 by-election Thomas Hislop
1887 election
1889 by-election
1890 election Thomas Duncan
1893 election
1896 election
1899 election
1902 election
1905 election
1908 election
1911 election Ernest Lee
1914 election
1919 election
1922 election John MacPherson
1923 by-election
1925 election Ernest Lee
1928 election John MacPherson
1931 election
1935 election Arnold Nordmeyer
1938 election
1943 election
1946 election
1949 election Thomas Hayman
1951 election
1954 election
(Electorate abolished 1957–1969, see Waitaki)
1969 election Allan Dick
1972 election Bill Laney
1975 election Jonathan Elworthy
(Electorate abolished 1978)

Election results

1931 election

General election, 1931: Oamaru[22]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
United John Andrew MacPherson 3,992 41.47
Reform J C Kirkness 2,946 30.60
Labour P Malthus 2,688 27.92
Majority 1,046 10.87
Informal votes 37 0.38
Turnout 9,663 88.52
Registered electors 10,916

1923 by-election

Oamaru by-election, 1923[23]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal John MacPherson 4,492 52.00
Reform Ernest Lee 4,147 48.00
Informal votes 21 0.24
Majority 345 3.99
Turnout 8,660 94.18
Registered electors 9,195

1902 election

General election, 1902: Oamaru[24][25]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Thomas Young Duncan 2,141 50.29 -16.44
Independent John Marshall Brown 1,261 29.62
Liberal John Andrew MacPherson 717 16.84 -16.42
Conservative Henry Beloe Crawford 138 3.24
Majority 880 20.67 -12.80
Turnout 4,257 81.54 +4.79
Registered electors 5,221

1899 election

General election, 1899: Oamaru[26][27]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Thomas Young Duncan 2,500 66.74 +6.65
Liberal John Andrew MacPherson 1,246 33.26
Majority 1,254 33.48 +13.31
Turnout 3,746 76.75 -7.46
Registered electors 4,881

1893 election

General election, 1893: Oamaru[28][29][30]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Thomas Young Duncan 1,611 51.83 -11.68
Independent PB Fraser 1,195 38.45
Independent David Dunn 252 8.11
Independent William Henry Frith 50 1.61
Majority 416 13.38 -13.63
Turnout 3,108 75.04 -2.30
Registered electors 4,142

1890 election

General election, 1890: Oamaru[31]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Thomas Young Duncan 1,105 63.51
Conservative Thomas William Hislop 635 36.49
Majority 470 27.01
Turnout 1,740 72.74
Registered electors 2,392

1885 by-election

Oamaru by-election, 1885[32]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Independent Thomas William Hislop 439 53.73%
Independent Lord Reidhaven 378 46.27% +1.53%
Majority 61 7.47% -3.06%
Turnout 817 57.09% -6.19%
Registered electors 1,381

1884 election

General election, 1884: Oamaru[15][33]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Independent Samuel Shrimski 483 55.26% +1.39%
Independent James Ogilvie-Grant 391 44.74%
Majority 92 10.53%
Turnout 874 63.29% +8.27%
Registered electors 1,381

1881 election

General election, 1881: Oamaru[13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Independent Samuel Shrimski 396 53.88%
Independent James Hassell 337 46.12%
Majority 57 7.76%
Informal votes 19 1.42%
Turnout 735 55.01%
Registered electors 1,336

Notes

  1. ↑ McRobie 1989, pp. 43–48.
  2. ↑ McRobie 1989, pp. 108, 111, 112.
  3. 1 2 McRobie 1989, p. 111.
  4. ↑ McRobie 1989, pp. 107, 111.
  5. ↑ McRobie 1989, pp. 108, 112.
  6. ↑ McRobie 1989, pp. 111f.
  7. 1 2 Scholefield 1950, p. 161.
  8. 1 2 Wilson 1985.
  9. ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 99.
  10. ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 109.
  11. ↑ "Obituary". The Oamaru Mail. XXI (6548). 5 May 1896. p. 4. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
  12. ↑ "Oamaru Nominations". The Oamaru Mail. IV (1322). 2 December 1881. p. 2. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
  13. 1 2 "The Elections". The Oamaru Mail. IV (1322). 10 December 1881. p. 2. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
  14. ↑ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1905). "The Hon. S. E. Shrimski". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Otago & Southland Provincial Districts. Christchurch: The Cyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 7 February 2011.
  15. 1 2 "Declaration of the Poll". The Oamaru Mail. IV (1322). 24 July 1884. p. 2. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
  16. ↑ Scholefield 1950, pp. 85, 139.
  17. ↑ Wilson 1985, p. 205.
  18. ↑ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1905). "Flourmillers, Grocers, Etc". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Otago & Southland Provincial Districts. Christchurch: The Cyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  19. ↑ "Declaration of the Poll". North Otago Times. XXXIII (6462). 30 September 1887. p. 2. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
  20. ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 114.
  21. ↑ The Cyclopedia of New Zealand 1897, p. 83.
  22. ↑ "Election Results". Auckland Star. LXII (290). 8 December 1931. p. 3. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  23. ↑ Hislop 1923, p. 11.
  24. ↑ "The General Election, 1902". National Library. 1903. p. 3. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
  25. ↑ "Electoral District of Oamaru". The Oamaru Mail. XXVIII (8060). 29 November 1902. p. 3. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
  26. ↑ "The General Election, 1899". Wellington: Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives. 19 June 1900. p. 2. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  27. ↑ "Electoral District of Oamaru". The Oamaru Mail. XXIV (7695). 12 December 1899. p. 3. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
  28. ↑ "The General Election, 1893". National Library. 1894. p. 2. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  29. ↑ "The General Election". Otago Daily Times. 28 November 1893. p. 6. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
  30. ↑ "Electoral District of Oamaru". The Oamaru Mail. XVIII (5807). 1 December 1893. p. 3. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
  31. ↑ "The General Election, 1890". National Library. 1891. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
  32. ↑ "The Parliamentary Election". The Oamaru Mail. IX (2908). 21 May 1885. p. 3. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
  33. ↑ "The General Election, 1884". National Library. 1884. p. 3. Retrieved 17 March 2012.

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 9/18/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.