1980 New Zealand Labour Party leadership election

Rowling was already seriously considering resigning from politics altogether. After the 1978 election, it was clear that his days as leader were numbered and a leadership challenge was imminent. Earlier in 1980 Rowling sacked Roger Douglas from his shadow cabinet as consumer affairs and transport spokesperson for releasing an unauthorised alternative budget, fuelling prospects of a leadership challenge from Douglas' friend David Lange.[1] Many were also weary of the fact that Labour was still polling well below National and just barely ahead of the Social Credit Party, who reached their popularity zenith during the East Coast Bays by-election.[2]

A caucus vote was held on 12 December 1980 where half the attendees supported a leadership change, and the other half opposed. After a silent pause, Rowling added that he too opposed, bringing the total votes for himself to 19 and enabling him to cling on to the party's leadership by a single vote.[6]

A list of each MP's vote.[7]

Three MPs were not present. Both Frank O'Flynn and Joe Walding were overseas and Bill Fraser was absent due to illness. Given the closeness of the result, their presence could have changed the result. Walding was a Rowling supporter whilst O'Flynn was likely to back Lange. Fraser was also thought to have favoured a leadership change.[8]

Rowling remained leader until 1983. He was visibly wounded by the challenge and called Lange's supporters 'nakedly ambitious rats', which he refused to retract.[6] Later, Lange and a group of his core supporters (Roger Douglas, Michael Bassett, Richard Prebble and Mike Moore) became known as the "Fish and Chip Brigade" due to a picture published at the time with the group (minus Prebble) eating Fish and chips in Douglas' office after the vote.[9]

Lange noted the lack of any ideological motives about the election to be odd, stating "It was a mixture of loyalty, distrust, calculation, idealism and opportunism which decided the vote".[2] Following the coup attempt Lange resigned as deputy leader in January 1981 to offer himself for re-election as a vote of confidence.[10] At Labour's first caucus meeting of the year he was re-elected as deputy leader.[11]

• Henderson, John (1981). Rowling: The Man and the Myth. Auckland: Fraser Books. ISBN 0-908620-03-9.
• Bassett, Michael (2008). Working with David: Inside the Lange Cabinet. Auckland: Hodder Moa. ISBN 978-1-86971-094-1.
• Lange, David (2005). My Life. Viking. ISBN 0-670-04556-X.