| James McCombs MP |
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|---|---|
| James McCombs between 1920 and 1925 | |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Lyttelton |
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| In office 1913–1933 |
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| Preceded by | George Laurenson |
| Succeeded by | Elizabeth McCombs |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 9 December 1873 County Leitrim, Ireland |
| Died | August 2, 1933 (aged 59) Christchurch |
| Political party | Social Democrat (1913–1916) Labour (1916–1933) |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth McCombs (married 1903) |
| Children | Four (two of which were adopted), incl. Terence McCombs |
James (Jimmy) McCombs (9 December 1873 – 2 August 1933) was a New Zealand Member of Parliament for Lyttelton.
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McCombs was born in County Leitrim, Ireland and came to New Zealand with his parents in 1876 as a three year old. He was educated at Sydenham School and Christchurch East School.[1] He was involved in the temperance movement (with Tommy Taylor), the Progressive Liberal Association (with Harry Ell) and was a friend of George Laurenson. A successful businessman, McCombs owned a drapery in Christchurch. He served on the Christchurch City Council between 1913–17 and 1931-1933. In the 1908 general election, McCombs stood in Christchurch East[2] as an Independent Liberal candidate; at the 1911 contest for Avon he was a Liberal-Labour candidate polling 2,817 votes to the official Labour candidate's 798 on the first ballot.[3]
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| Years | Term | Electorate | Party | |
| 1913–1914 | 18th | Lyttelton | Social Democrat | |
| 1914–1916 | 19th | Lyttelton | Social Democrat | |
| 1916 | Changed allegiance to: | Labour | ||
| 1917 | Changed allegiance to: | Independent | ||
| 1918–1919 | Changed allegiance to: | Labour | ||
| 1919–1922 | 20th | Lyttelton | Labour | |
| 1922–1925 | 21st | Lyttelton | Labour | |
| 1926–1928 | 22nd | Lyttelton | Labour | |
| 1928–1931 | 23rd | Lyttelton | Labour | |
| 1931–1933 | 24th | Lyttelton | Labour | |
James McCombs represented the Lyttelton electorate for 20 years from the 1913 by-election (following the death of George Laurenson). The 1925 general election was contested by Melville Lyons and the incumbent, McCombs.[4] The original count resulted in a tie of 4,900 votes each. The returning officer gave his casting vote to Lyons and declared him elected. A recount was demanded, and on 3 December 1925, an amended result of 4890 votes for Lyons and 4884 votes for McCombs was determined, with the differences in the counts explained by counting informal votes in a different way.[5] Lyons' election was declared void on 13 March 1926, and McCombs was restored as the holder of the electorate.[4] McCombs held the electorate until 1933, when he died in office.[6] The electorate was then held by his wife Elizabeth McCombs[6][7] from 1933 to 1935, and his son Terence McCombs from 1935 to 1951.[8]
In 1917, McCombs resigned the Presidency and his membership of the New Zealand Labour Party over the state control of liquor issue.[2] He rejoined the party in 1918. During the 1920s McCombs with Dan Sullivan led the opposition to Harry Holland within the Parliamentary Labour Party caucus.
He died at Christchurch on 2 August 1933 from heart failure.[1]
| Parliament of New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by George Laurenson |
Member of Parliament for Lyttelton 1913–1925 1926–1933 |
Succeeded by Melville Lyons |
| Preceded by Melville Lyons |
Succeeded by Elizabeth McCombs |
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