New Zealand by-elections
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
By-elections in New Zealand occur to fill vacant seats in the New Zealand Parliament. The death, resignation, or expulsion of a sitting electorate MP can cause a by-election. (Note that list MPs do not have geographic districts for the purpose of provoking by-elections — if a list MP's seat becomes vacant, the next person on his or her party's list fills the position.) A by-election need not take place if a general election will occur within six months of an electorate seat becoming vacant.
In recent years by-elections have not occurred particularly frequently — only one in the 2002 - 2005 parliamentary term, and none in the 1999 - 2002 term. This is because most MPs who retire mid-term (most recently Labour MP Jim Sutton) are List MPs, and are simply replaced by the next member on their party list.
Historically, however, they have taken place considerably more frequently — the 2nd Parliament of 1856 - 1860, for example, saw at least twenty by-elections, despite the House of Representatives then having only thirty-seven seats.
[edit] List of New Zealand by-elections
The following incomplete table lists previous by-elections in New Zealand. Interestingly, it features the names of at least four subsequent Prime Ministers.
| Election | Date | Winner |
| 1854 City of Auckland by-election | 4 August 1854 | William Brown |
| 1854 Nelson by-election | 19 June 1854 | Samuel Stephens |
| 1854 Waimea by-election | 21 June 1854 | William Travers |
| 1893 Inangahua by-election | 8 June 1893 | Robert Stout (Liberal) |
| 1909 Thames by-election | 4 February 1909 | Edmund Taylor (Liberal) |
| 1909 Northern Maori by-election | 20 March 1909 | Te Rangi Hiroa (Peter Buck) (Liberal) |
| 1909 Rangitikei by-election | 23 September 1909 | Robert William Smith (Liberal) |
| 1910 Auckland East by-election | 16 June 1910 | Arthur Myers (Liberal) |
| 1911 Christchurch North by-election | 17 August 1911 | Leonard Isitt (Liberal) |
| 1912 Egmont by-election | 17 September 1912 | Charles Wilkinson (Reform) |
| 1913 Grey by-election | 24 July 1913 | Paddy Webb (Social Democrats) |
| 1913 Lyttelton by-election | 9 December 1913 | James McCombs (Social Democrats) |
| 1915 Dunedin Central by-election | 3 February 1915 | Charles Statham (Reform) |
| 1915 Bay of Islands by-election | 8 June 1915 | William Stewart (Reform) |
| 1915 Taumaurunui by-election | 15 June 1915 | William Thomas Jennings (Liberal) |
| 1916 Pahiatua by-election | 17 August 1916 | George Harold Smith (Reform) |
| 1917 Hawke's Bay by-election | 8 March 1917 | John Findlay (Liberal) |
| 1917 Bay of Islands by-election | 17 March 1917 | Vernon Reed (Reform) |
| 1917 Grey by-election | 24 November 1917 | Paddy Webb (Labour) |
| 1918 Wellington North by-election | 12 February 1918 | John Luke (Liberal) |
| 1918 Southern Maori by-election | 21 February 1918 | John Uru (Independent) |
| 1918 Grey by-election | 29 May 1918 | Harry Holland (Labour) |
| 1918 Wellington Central by-election | 3 October 1918 | Peter Fraser (Labour) |
| 1918 Taranaki by-election | 10 October 1918 | Sydney George Smith (Independent) |
| 1918 Palmerston by-election | 19 December 1918 | James Nash (Reform) |
| 1918 Wellington South by-election | 19 December 1918 | Robert Semple (Labour) |
| 1920 Bruce by-election | 14 April 1920 | John Edie (Liberal) |
| 1920 Stratford by-election | 6 May 1920 | Robert Masters (Liberal) |
| 1920 Bay of Plenty by-election | 30 September 1920 | Kenneth Stuart Williams (Reform) |
| 1921 Patea by-election | 13 April 1921 | E Dixon (Reform) |
| 1921 Auckland East by-election | 2 November 1921 | Clutha MacKenzie (Reform) |
| 1922 Southern Maori by-election | 25 January 1922 | Henare Uru (Reform) |
| 1922 Dunedin North by-election | 21 June 1922 | James Wright Munro (Labour) |
| 1923 Tauranga by-election | 28 March 1923 | Charles MacMillan (Reform) |
| 1923 Oamaru by-election | 1 May 1923 | John Macpherson (Liberal) |
| 1925 Franklin by-election | 17 June 1925 | Ewen McLennan (Reform) |
| 1926 Eden by-election | 15 April 1926 | Rex Mason (Labour) |
| 1927 Raglan by-election | 29 September 1927 | Martin W Lee (Labour) |
| 1929 Bay of Islands by-election | 10 April 1929 | Harold Rushworth (Country) |
| 1929 Hutt by-election | 18 December 1929 | Walter Nash (Labour) |
| 1930 Parnell by-election | 7 May 1930 | William Endean (Reform) |
| 1930 Invercargill by-election | 13 August 1930 | Vincent Ward (United) |
| 1930 Waipawa by-election | 8 October 1930 | Albert Jull (United) |
| 1930 Western Maori by-election | 8 October 1930 | Taite te Tomo (Reform) |
| 1931 Hauraki by-election | 27 May 1931 | Walter Massey (Reform) |
| 1932 Southern Maori by-election | 3 August 1932 | Eruera Tirikatene (Independent) |
| 1932 Motueka by-election | 1 December 1932 | Keith Holyoake (Reform) |
| 1933 Lyttelton by-election | 13 September 1933 | Elizabeth McCombs (Labour) |
| 1933 Buller by-election | 22 November 1933 | Paddy Webb (Labour) |
| 1935 Lyttelton by-election | 24 July 1935 | Terry McCombs (Labour) |
| 1951 Brooklyn by-election | 17 February 1951 | Arnold Nordmeyer (Labour) |
| 1953 Dunedin North by-election | 1953 | Ethel McMillan (Labour) |
| 1956 Riccarton by-election | 1956 | Mick Connelly (Labour) |
| 1957 Bay of Plenty by-election | 1957 | Percy Allen (National) |
| 1962 Buller by-election | 1962 | Bill Rowling (Labour) |
| 1962 Timaru by-election | 1962 | Basil Arthur (Labour) |
| 1962 Waitaki by-election | 1962 | Allan Dick (National) |
| 1963 Otahuhu by-election | 1963 | Bob Tizard (Labour) |
| 1967 Eastern Maori by-election | 1967 | Paraone Rewiti (Labour) |
| 1967 Fendalton by-election | 1967 | Eric Holland (National) |
| 1967 Palmerston North by-election | 1967 | Joe Walding (Labour) |
| 1967 Petone by-election | 1967 | Fraser Colman (Labour) |
| 1967 Southern Maori by-election | 1967 | Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan (Labour) |
| 1974 Sydenham by-election | 1974 | John Kirk (Labour) |
| 1977 Mangere by-election | 26 March 1977 | David Lange (Labour) |
| 1977 Pahiatua by-election | 1977 | John Falloon (National) |
| 1978 Rangitikei by-election | 1978 | Bruce Beetham (Social Credit) |
| 1979 Christchurch Central by-election | 1979 | Geoffrey Palmer (Labour) |
| 1980 East Coast Bays by-election | 1980 | Gary Knapp (Social Credit) |
| 1980 Northern Maori by-election | 1980 | Bruce Gregory (Labour) |
| 1980 Onehunga by-election | 1980 | Frank Gerbic (Labour) |
| 1985 Timaru by-election | 15 June 1985 | Maurice McTigue (National) |
| 1992 Tamaki by-election | 15 February 1992 | Clem Simich (National) |
| 1992 Wellington Central by-election | 12 December 1992 | Chris Laidlaw (Labour) |
| 1993 Tauranga by-election | 17 April 1993 | Winston Peters (Independent) |
| 1994 Selwyn by-election | 13 August 1994 | David Carter (National) |
| 1998 Taranaki-King Country by-election | 2 May 1998 | Shane Ardern (National) |
| 2004 Te Tai Hauauru by-election | 10 July 2004 | Tariana Turia (Maori Party) |
