Waikato (New Zealand electorate)

Waikato is an electorate in the New Zealand Parliament. A Waikato electorate was first created in 1871 and an electorate by this name has existed from 1871 to 1963, 1969 to 1996, and 2008 to the present, though exact borders have often changed.

Waikato electorate boundaries used since the 2014 election

The Waikato electorate is represented by Tim van de Molen for the National Party, who has held the seat since the 2017 general election. Both the current Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and the current Opposition Leader Judith Collins were born and raised within its borders.

Geography

The Waikato electorate, whose borders were last altered in 2020,[1] is in the Waikato region and includes largely rural areas to the north and the west of the city of Hamilton. The Waikato River flows along near its southern boundary then travels north through the electorate. It includes small portions of the outskirts of Hamilton and Cambridge. Towns within the electorate include Morrinsville, Huntly, and Matamata,[2] each of which have populations around 8,000.

In a piece for the 2020 election, journalist Tom Rowland described the area as "one of the country's most vital regions, home to farmers and agricultural industries that continue to hold New Zealand's economy steady in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic". Rowland considered it to be a key area for future economic development, calling it "the key to activating the Golden Triangle between Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga."[3]

The electorate is the birthplace of both Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Opposition Leader Judith Collins.[3]

History

Creation and seat holders prior to 1938

The Waikato electorate was first contested in the 1871 election.[4] James McPherson was elected, but he resigned the same year, on 20 December.[5] William Jackson won the resulting 1872 by-election. Jackson retired at the end of the parliamentary term in 1875.[6] Frederick Whitaker won 5 January 1876 election.[7] In the 1879 election, Whitaker contested the Eden electorate but was beaten by Joseph Tole.[8][9]

The Waikato electorate was won by John Blair Whyte in the 1879 election, who served for eleven years until 1890 when he retired. Whyte was appointed to the Legislative Council in the following year.[10] John Bryce, who first became Member of the House of Representatives during the 4th Parliament, succeeded Whyte in the 1890 election, but he resigned in the following year.[11] The resulting 1891 by-election was won by Edward Lake, who retired at the end of the parliamentary term in 1893.[12]

The 1893 election was won by Alfred Cadman for the Liberal Party, who had been an MP in various electorates since 1881. At the next election in 1896, Cadman successfully contested the Ohinemuri electorate.[13] The Waikato electorate was won by Frederic Lang in 1896, who represented the electorate until his defeat by the Liberal Party's Henry Greenslade in the 1905 election.[14] Greenslade held the electorate until 1911,[15] when he was defeated by the Reform candidate Alexander Young.[16]

Young won subsequent elections in 1914 and 1919. In the 1922 election, he successfully contested the newly formed Hamilton electorate.[16] Young was succeeded by the Liberal candidate Frederick Lye in the Waikato electorate in 1922.[17] At the 1925 election, Lye was defeated by Reform's Daniel Stewart Reid.[18] Lye in turn defeated Reid at the 1928 election, but this time standing for the United Party. The United–Reform Coalition was established just before the 1931 election and Lye was again successful.[17] In the 1935 election, Lye was beaten by Robert Coulter of the Labour Party.[19] Coulter served only one term in Waikato, as he was defeated by the National Party candidate Stan Goosman in the 1938 election.

1938 onward

Since 1938, the Waikato electorate (when it has existed) has always been held by a National Party member. This trend has lasted through 2020, when the seat was retained by National MP Tim van de Molen.[3][20] Other electorates which covered parts of this region have also strongly supported National. The electorates of Piako, Matamata, and Karapiro were entirely National-held during their time as electorates, the Hamilton electorate was held by National from 1943 until it was dissolved in 1969, and the Waipa electorate was held by National from 1954 until its dissolution in 1996.

Goosman, who had taken Waikato in 1938, also won the 1943 election, but successfully contested the 1946 election in the newly formed Piako electorate.[15] Goosman was succeeded in Waikato by Geoffrey Sim in 1946.[21] Sim held the electorate until it was abolished in 1963, when he contested Piako instead.[22]

The Waikato electorate was re-established in 1969 following the Electoral Act of 1965, which led to substantial changes in the number, shape, and size of electorates across the country.[23][24][25][26][27] These changes came into effect with the 1969 election.[24] The first representative was National's Lance Adams-Schneider, who had previously represented the Hamilton electorate. Adams-Schneider retired from Parliament in 1981 and became Ambassador of New Zealand to the United States in the following year.[22] Adams-Schneider was succeeded by National's Simon Upton, who won the 1981 election and started his long parliamentary career with one term in Waikato. Upton contested the Raglan in the 1984 election and was succeeded by National's Rob Storey in Waikato. Storey held the electorate until it was abolished again in the electorate changes that came with the introduction of Mixed-member proportional voting in 1996.

The Waikato electorate was re-established in 2006 for the 2008 election.[28]

Lindsay Tisch, who had been the MP for Piako since 2002, won Waikato at the 2008 election.[29] Tisch retained his seat at the in the 2011 election[30] and the 2014 election, but he announced he would not stand for the 2017 general election.[31] The seat was won by Tim van de Molen, retaining it for the National Party, who won it again in 2020.

The most recent boundary changes to Waikato occurred in 2020, when more area was added in its north and its south, as well as areas just outside Hamilton and Cambridge.[2]

Three of the five National Party members of parliament for Waikato were cabinet ministers.

Members of Parliament

Key

 Independent    Conservative    Liberal    Reform    United    Labour    National  

Election Winner
1871 election James McPherson
1872 by-election William Jackson
1876 election Frederick Whitaker
1879 election John Blair Whyte
1881 election
1884 election
1887 election
1890 election John Bryce
1891 by-election Edward Lake
1893 election Alfred Cadman
1896 election Frederic Lang
1899 election
1902 election
1905 election Henry Greenslade
1908 election
1911 election Alexander Young
1914 election
1919 election
1922 election Frederick Lye
1925 election Stewart Reid
1928 election Frederick Lye (2nd term)
1931 election
1935 election Robert Coulter
1938 election Stan Goosman
1943 election
1946 election Geoffrey Sim
1949 election
1951 election
1954 election
1957 election
1960 election
(Electorate abolished 1963–1969)
1969 election Lance Adams-Schneider
1972 election
1975 election
1978 election
1981 election Simon Upton
1984 election Rob Storey
1987 election
1990 election
1993 election
(Electorate abolished 1996–2008)
2008 election Lindsay Tisch
2011 election
2014 election
2017 election Tim van de Molen
2020 election

List MPs

Members of Parliament elected from party lists in elections where that person also unsuccessfully contested the Waikato electorate. Unless otherwise stated, all MPs terms began and ended at general elections.

Election Winner
2008 election Jacinda Ardern
2011 election Barbara Stewart
2014 election
2020 election James McDowall

Election results

2017 election

2017 general election: Waikato[32]
Notes:

Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote.
Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list.
Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent.
A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.

Party Candidate Votes % ±% Party votes % ±%
National Tim van de Molen 24,560 61.33 -3.56 23,891 58.48 -1.51
Labour Brooke Loader 9,108 22.74 +3.65 9,844 24.1 +9.73
NZ First Stu Husband 3,716 9.28 -0.15 4,112 10.07 -0.68
Green Philippa Stevenson 2,113 5.28 1,240 3.04 -2.72
Opportunities   759 1.86
ACT   261 0.64 +0.11
Māori   177 0.43 -0.11
Legalise Cannabis   142 0.35 -0.15
Conservative   123 0.3 -5.4
Ban 1080   58 0.14 -0.11
Outdoors   32 0.08
United Future   26 0.06 -0.16
People's Party   18 0.04
Democrats   15 0.04 -0.07
Mana   5 0.01 -0.48[lower-alpha 1]
Internet   4 0.01 -0.48[lower-alpha 2]
Informal votes 548 146
Total Valid votes 40,045 40,853
National hold Majority 15,452 38.59 -7.2

2014 election

2014 general election: Waikato[33]
Notes:

Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote.
Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list.
Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent.
A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.

Party Candidate Votes % ±% Party votes % ±%
National Y Lindsay Tisch 22,911 64.89 -0.01 21,598 59.99 +0.01
Labour Christine Greer 6,742 19.09 +0.69 5,303 14.73 -1.71
NZ First Barbara Stewart 3,330 9.43 +4.28 3,870 10.75 +2.65
Conservative Brian Dobbs 1,442 4.08 +0.34 2,053 5.70 +1.62
ACT Mike Burrow 290 0.82 -0.91 191 0.53 -1.40
Democrats Katherine Ransom 172 0.49 +0.14 38 0.11 -0.02
Green   2,075 5.76 -1.26
Māori   196 0.54 -0.05
Legalise Cannabis   180 0.50 -0.04
Internet Mana   178 0.49 +0.20
Ban 1080   89 0.25 +0.25
United Future   78 0.22 -0.55
Independent Coalition   10 0.03 +0.03
Civilian   8 0.02 +0.02
Focus   6 0.02 +0.02
Informal votes 421 127
Total Valid votes 35,308 36,000
National hold Majority 16,169 45.79 -0.71

2011 election

2011 general election: Waikato[30]
Notes:

Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote.
Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list.
Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent.
A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.

Party Candidate Votes % ±% Party votes % ±%
National Y Lindsay Tisch 19,817 64.90 +1.47 18,875 59.98 +2.54
Labour Kate Sutton 5,619 18.40 -4.52 5,173 16.44 -6.13
Green Cameron Harper 1,970 6.45 +1.77 2,208 7.02 +3.08
NZ First Barbara Stewart 1,571 5.15 +0.88 2,549 8.10 +2.81
Conservative Brian Dobbs 1,142 3.74 +3.74 1,284 4.08 +4.08
ACT Robin Boom 307 1.01 -2.43 607 1.93 -4.54
Democrats John Pemberton 107 0.35 -0.03 41 0.13 +0.01
United Future   243 0.77 -0.11
Māori   186 0.59 -0.14
Legalise Cannabis   170 0.54 +0.16
Mana   91 0.29 +0.29
Libertarianz   28 0.09 +0.04
Alliance   12 0.04 -0.04
Informal votes 775 298
Total Valid votes 30,533 31,467
National hold Majority 14,198 46.50 +5.99

Electorate (as at 26 November 2011): 42,084[34]

2008 election

2008 general election: Waikato[29]
Notes:

Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote.
Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list.
Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent.
A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.

Party Candidate Votes % ±% Party votes % ±%
National Y Lindsay Tisch 20,122 63.44 18,532 57.45
Labour Jacinda Ardern 7,272 22.93 7,280 22.57
Green Wendy Harper 1,484 4.68 1,271 3.94
NZ First Barbara Stewart 1,353 4.27 1,708 5.29
ACT Mark Davies 1,089 3.43 2,088 6.47
Kiwi James Ross 278 0.88 171 0.53
Democrats John Pemberton 122 0.38 40 0.12
United Future   285 0.88
Māori   235 0.73
Bill and Ben   195 0.60
Progressive   188 0.58
Legalise Cannabis   123 0.38
Family Party   87 0.27
Alliance   25 0.08
Libertarianz   15 0.05
Workers Party   8 0.02
Pacific   4 0.01
RAM   3 0.01
RONZ   1 0.003
Informal votes 245 107
Total Valid votes 31,720 32,259
National win new seat Majority 12,850 40.51

1935 election

1935 general election: Waikato[35]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Robert Coulter 4,258 44.01
United Frederick Lye 3,474 35.90 -20.95
Country Party Solomon Netheim Ziman[nb 1] 1,221 12.62 -30.53
Democrat Dr. H E Annett 722 7.46
Informal votes 155 1.60 +0.69
Majority 784 8.10
Turnout 9,675 87.38 +9.46
Registered electors 11,072

Table footnotes:

  1. Ziman was the father of John Ziman[36]

1931 election

1931 general election: Waikato[37]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
United Frederick Lye 4,072 56.85
Country Party Solomon Netheim Ziman[nb 1] 3,091 43.15
Majority 981 13.70
Informal votes 66 0.91
Turnout 7,229 77.92
Registered electors 9,277

Table footnotes:

  1. Ziman was the father of John Ziman[38]

1928 election

1928 general election: Waikato[39][40]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
United Frederick Lye 2,979 38.34
Reform Stewart Reid 2,893 37.24
Country Party Patrick Keegan 1,897 24.42
Majority 86 1.11
Informal votes 70 0.89
Turnout 7,839 85.04
Registered electors 9,218

1908 election

1908 general election: Waikato, first ballot[41]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Henry Greenslade 3,305 54.03
Conservative Allen Bell 2,812 45.97
Majority 493 8.06
Turnout 6,117 83.01
Registered electors 7,369

1899 election

1899 general election: Waikato[42][43]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Frederic Lang 2,337 53.70
Liberal John Hosking 2,015 46.30
Majority 322 7.40
Turnout 4,352 82.39
Registered electors 5,282

1891 by-election

1891 Waikato by-election[44]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Edward Lake 697 60.14
Independent William Murray 462 39.86
Majority 235 20.28
Informal votes 10 0.86
Turnout 1,169 52.28

Notes

  1. 2017 Mana Party swing is relative to the votes for Internet-Mana in 2014; it shared a party list with the Internet Party in the 2014 election
  2. 2017 Internet Party swing is relative to the votes for Internet-Mana in 2014; it shared a party list with Mana Party in the 2014 election

References

  1. "Boundary Review 2019/20 | Elections". elections.nz. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  2. "Electorate Map". elections.nz. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  3. Rowland, Tom (7 August 2020). "Election 2020: National and Labour eye the Waikato region as beating heart to New Zealand". NZ Herald. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
  4. Scholefield 1950, p. 165.
  5. Scholefield 1950, p. 124.
  6. Scholefield 1950, p. 116.
  7. Scholefield 1950, p. 147.
  8. Stone, R. C. J. "Whitaker, Frederick – Biography". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  9. Scholefield 1950, p. 144.
  10. Scholefield 1950, pp. 87, 147.
  11. Scholefield 1950, p. 97.
  12. Wilson 1985, p. 211.
  13. Scholefield 1950, p. 99.
  14. Scholefield 1950, p. 119.
  15. Scholefield 1950, p. 109.
  16. Scholefield 1950, p. 149.
  17. Scholefield 1950, p. 121.
  18. Scholefield 1950, p. 134.
  19. Scholefield 1950, p. 102.
  20. "Waikato - Preliminary Count". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  21. Scholefield 1950, p. 139.
  22. Wilson 1985.
  23. McRobie 1989, pp. 108, 111, 112.
  24. McRobie 1989, p. 111.
  25. McRobie 1989, pp. 107, 111.
  26. McRobie 1989, pp. 108, 112.
  27. McRobie 1989, pp. 111f.
  28. "Report of the Representation Commission 2020" (PDF). 17 April 2020.
  29. "Official Count Results – Waikato". Wellington: New Zealand Electoral Commission. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  30. "Official Count Results – Waikato". Wellington: New Zealand Electoral Commission. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  31. "MP Lindsay Tisch not to seek re-election". Stuff.co.nz. 20 June 2016. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  32. "Official Count Results – Waikato". Wellington: New Zealand Electoral Commission. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  33. "Official Count Results – Waikato". Wellington: New Zealand Electoral Commission. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  34. "Enrolment statistics". Electoral Commission. 26 November 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
  35. The General Election, 1935. National Library. 1936. pp. 1–35. Retrieved 3 August 2013.
  36. "Ziman, John Michael" (PDF). Oxford University Press. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  37. The General Election, 1931. Government Printer. 1932. p. 5. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
  38. "Ziman, John Michael" (PDF). Oxford University Press. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  39. Skinner, W. A. G. (1929). The General Election, 1928. Government Printer. p. 5. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  40. "General election". Waikato Times. 104 (17554). 8 November 1928. p. 9. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  41. AtoJs 1908 election 1909, p. 6.
  42. "The General Election, 1899". Wellington: Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives. 19 June 1900. p. 1. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  43. "Official Declaration of Poll". Auckland Star. XXX (296). 30 November 1899. p. 5. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  44. "Waikato electoral district". Waikato Times. XXXVII (3003). 13 October 1891. p. 3. Retrieved 30 April 2020.

Bibliography

  • McRobie, Alan (1989). Electoral Atlas of New Zealand. Wellington: GP Books. ISBN 0-477-01384-8.
  • Mansfield, F. W. (1909). The General Election, 1908. National Library. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  • Scholefield, Guy (1950) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 (3rd ed.). Wellington: Govt. Printer.
  • Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.
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