1909 Rangitikei by-election

Last updated April 17, 2024

The 1909 Rangitikei by-election was a by-election held during the 17th New Zealand Parliament in the Rangitikei electorate of the North Island. This was the sixth by-election since the Rangitikei electorate was established for the 1861 election. The previous by-election took place in 1892 and the following one took place in 1978. The Second Ballot Act 1908 was in force and in the first ballot, and Frank Hockly of the opposition Reform Party won the first ballot, but Robert William Smith of the governing Liberal Party was ultimately chosen in the second ballot.

Background

The by-election was caused after the death of Liberal Party MP Arthur Remington on 17 August 1909.^[1] Remington died at his home in Tinakori Road, Wellington, at the age of 53.^[2]

Six candidates were announced on 9 September for the by-election: Frank Hockly and George Hutchison were candidates for the opposition, Robert Hornblow was a candidate for Liberal–Labour, James Georgetti was an independent, and Robert Smith and William Meldrum were candidates for the Liberal Party.^[3] However, ultimately George Hutchison did not appear on the ballot as he agreed to stand down in the interests of the Reform Party in favour of Hockly.^[4]

The Second Ballot Act 1908 was in force and had previously been used for the 1908 election. This was the second by-election where it applied, and the act stipulated that the leading candidate had to obtain an absolute majority of the votes, or else the two highest polling candidates would face each other in a second election. No candidate received an absolute majority in the first ballot on 17 September and consequently a second ballot took place on 23 September.^[5]

Results

The following tables give the election results:

First ballot

1909 Rangitikei by-election: First ballot^[6]^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Reform	Frank Hockly	1,548	37.04
	Liberal	Robert Smith	1,055	25.25
	Liberal	William Meldrum	903	21.61
	Independent	James Georgetti	340	8.14
	Liberal–Labour	Robert Hornblow	333	7.97
Turnout			4,179

Hockly received a plurality of votes, receiving 1,548 votes of the total of 4,179. Meldrum was expected to receive the votes from those in favour of the Liberal Government,^[3] however Smith ultimately came in second place. As no candidate received a majority, a second ballot took place one week later.^[5]

Second ballot

1909 Rangitikei by-election: Second ballot^[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Robert Smith	2,410	54.51	+29.26
	Reform	Frank Hockly	2,011	45.49	+8.45
Majority			399	9.03
Turnout			4,421

The second ballot resulted in the return of Liberal candidate Smith, who was elected by a majority of 399 votes. Despite the in-fighting from Government candidates in the first ballot, they stood faithfully in favour of Smith for the second ballot. Thomas Mackenzie, who at the time served as Minister of Agriculture, attributed the victory to "a recognition on the part of the electors that the Government is honestly striving to do its very best in the interests of the country" and took the rural vote of the electorate to be an approval of his ministry's work.^[8]

Results by locality

Following are two tables showcasing the detailed results by locality for each of the two ballots.

First ballot^[5]

Locality	Hockly (Reform)		Smith (Liberal)		Meldrum (Liberal)		Georgetti (Independent)		Hornblow (Liberal–Labour)
Locality	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%
Aberfeldie	12	75.00	0	0.00	3	18.75	1	6.25	0	0.00
Awarua	2	22.22	4	44.44	2	22.22	1	11.11	0	0.00
Bell's Junction	14	34.15	19	46.34	6	14.63	1	2.44	1	2.44
Eastbrook	83	39.15	11	5.19	65	30.66	4	1.89	49	23.11
Fordell	112	65.50	10	5.85	33	19.30	2	1.17	14	8.19
Hunterville	181	38.35	8	1.69	257	54.45	14	2.97	12	2.54
Kaweka Road	4	50.00	0	0.00	4	50.00	0	0.00	0	0.00
Koeke	13	30.23	1	2.33	22	51.16	5	11.63	2	4.65
Kakatahi	14	29.79	11	23.40	20	42.55	1	2.13	1	2.13
Kauangaroa	18	75.00	2	8.33	4	16.67	0	0.00	0	0.00
Long Acre Valley	13	56.52	1	4.35	9	39.13	0	0.00	0	0.00
Lower Kawhatau	9	21.43	5	11.90	6	14.29	17	40.48	5	11.90
Mangahoe Road	30	90.91	1	3.03	2	6.06	0	0.00	0	0.00
Mangamahu	49	74.24	1	1.52	12	18.18	4	6.06	0	0.00
Mangaonoho	25	39.06	6	9.38	32	50.00	0	0.00	1	1.56
Mangaweka	52	16.20	61	19.00	25	7.79	111	34.58	72	22.43
Manui	7	22.58	6	19.35	5	16.13	3	9.68	10	32.26
Marybank	56	80.00	4	5.71	10	14.29	0	0.00	0	0.00
Mataroa	47	42.73	23	20.91	16	14.55	13	11.82	11	10.00
Moawhango	15	31.91	9	19.15	20	42.55	3	6.38	0	0.00
Ngawaka	6	16.22	27	72.97	3	8.11	0	0.00	1	2.70
Ohingaiti	57	46.72	36	29.51	15	12.30	12	9.84	2	1.64
Okoia	82	86.32	2	2.11	8	8.42	0	0.00	3	3.16
Otairi	33	67.35	0	0.00	16	32.65	0	0.00	0	0.00
Pohonui	7	33.33	0	0.00	14	66.67	0	0.00	0	0.00
Polgreen's Corner	42	82.35	6	11.76	3	5.88	0	0.00	0	0.00
Poukiore	31	70.45	0	0.00	11	25.00	1	2.27	1	2.27
Pukeokahu	7	21.88	4	12.50	2	6.25	19	59.38	0	0.00
Rangiwaea	6	54.55	3	27.27	2	18.18	0	0.00	0	0.00
Rata	41	37.61	42	38.53	22	20.18	2	1.83	2	1.83
Ruahine	17	28.81	23	38.98	10	16.95	4	6.78	5	8.47
Ruanui	15	50.00	7	23.33	4	13.33	4	13.33	0	0.00
Taihape	113	16.03	403	57.16	93	13.19	27	3.83	69	9.79
Taoroa	21	53.85	5	12.82	8	20.51	2	5.13	3	7.69
Tauakira	13	72.22	1	5.56	1	5.56	3	16.67	0	0.00
Te Kapua Block	9	30.00	14	46.67	7	23.33	0	0.00	0	0.00
Tiriraukawa	12	44.44	3	11.11	6	22.22	4	14.81	2	7.41
Toi Toi	1	33.33	1	33.33	1	33.33	0	0.00	0	0.00
Torere	1	1.47	24	35.29	21	30.88	16	23.53	6	8.82
Turangarere Railway station	5	7.94	49	77.78	7	11.11	1	1.59	1	1.59
Turangarere Schoolhouse	19	45.24	19	45.24	4	9.52	0	0.00	0	0.00
Upokongaro	59	64.13	2	2.17	8	8.70	18	19.57	5	5.43
Upper Kawhatau	23	43.40	14	26.42	1	1.89	10	18.87	5	9.43
Upper Turakina Valley	14	35.90	0	0.00	24	61.54	1	2.56	0	0.00
Utiku	20	13.79	67	46.21	14	9.66	15	10.34	29	20.00
Wainui	12	40.00	14	46.67	4	13.33	0	0.00	0	0.00
Wakelin's	5	17.86	10	35.71	3	10.71	2	7.14	8	28.57
Wairepo	9	47.37	3	15.79	3	15.79	1	5.26	3	15.79
Whangaehu	36	64.29	4	7.14	11	19.64	2	3.57	3	5.36
Winiata	12	19.05	27	42.86	8	12.70	11	17.46	5	7.94
Total	1,548	37.04	1,055	25.25	903	21.61	340	8.14	333	7.97

Second ballot^[8]

Locality	Hockly (Reform)		Smith (Liberal)
Locality	Votes	%	Votes	%
Aberfeldie	16	94.12	1	5.89
Awarua	0	0.00	4	100.00
Bell's Junction	21	44.68	26	55.32
Bennett's Siding	10	12.50	70	87.50
Eastbrook	153	49.58	155	50.32
Fordell	112	69.57	49	30.43
Hunterville	223	47.55	246	52.45
Kaweka Road	6	75.00	2	25.00
Koeke	19	45.24	23	54.76
Kakatahi	16	38.10	26	61.90
Kauangaroa	23	82.14	5	17.86
Long Acre Valley	13	72.22	5	27.78
Lower Kawhatau	12	26.09	34	73.91
Mangahoe Road	35	100.00	0	0.00
Mangamahu	56	77.78	16	22.22
Mangaonoho	26	40.63	38	59.38
Mangaweka	85	28.43	214	71.57
Manui	11	33.33	22	66.67
Marybank	72	80.00	18	20.00
Mataroa	48	48.00	52	52.00
Moawhango	26	53.06	23	46.94
Ngawaka	17	41.46	24	58.54
Ohingaiti	72	60.00	48	40.00
Okoia	92	88.46	12	11.54
Otairi	35	72.92	13	27.08
Pohonui	9	39.13	14	60.87
Polgreen's Corner	51	87.93	7	12.07
Poukiore	39	81.25	9	18.75
Pukeokahu	16	57.14	12	42.86
Rangiwaea	7	58.33	5	41.67
Rata	56	47.46	62	52.54
Ruahine	13	20.00	52	80.00
Ruanui	22	70.97	9	29.03
Taihape	188	23.95	597	76.05
Taoroa	26	60.47	17	39.53
Tauakira	6	50.00	6	50.00
Te Kapua Block	11	36.67	19	63.33
Tiriraukawa	14	50.00	14	50.00
Toi Toi	1	50.00	1	50.00
Torere	12	16.90	59	83.10
Turangarere Railway station	6	7.50	74	92.50
Turangarere Schoolhouse	22	52.38	20	47.62
Upokongaro	53	61.63	33	38.37
Upper Kawhatau	27	55.10	22	44.90
Upper Turakina Valley	17	50.00	17	50.00
Utiku	50	33.56	99	66.44
Wainui	16	47.06	18	52.94
Wakelin's	8	22.22	28	77.78
Wairepo	10	50.00	10	50.00
Whangaehu	36	62.07	22	37.93
Winiata	16	23.53	52	76.47
Total	2,011	45.49	2,410	54.51

Notes

↑ Wilson 1985, p. 229.
↑ "Deaths". The Dominion Post . Vol. 2, no. 589. 18 August 1909. p. 4. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
1 2 "The Rangitikei Seat". Otago Daily Times . No. 14624. 9 September 1909. p. 7. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
↑ "Rangitikei Election". The Press . Vol. 65, no. 13526. 13 September 1909. p. 8. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
1 2 3 "The Rangitikei By-election". The Wanganui Herald . Vol. 44, no. 12876. 17 September 1909. p. 5. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
↑ "Final Returns". Taranaki Herald . Vol. 55, no. 14012. 17 September 1909. p. 3. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
↑ "The Electoral District of Rangitikei". Wanganui Herald . Vol. XXXIV, no. 12873. 13 September 1909. p. 1. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
1 2 3 "The Rangitikei By-election". The Wanganui Herald . Vol. 44, no. 12882. 24 September 1909. p. 5. Retrieved 16 May 2016.

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References

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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[FOOTNOTEWilson1985229-1] Wilson 1985, p. 229.

[2] "Deaths". The Dominion Post . Vol. 2, no. 589. 18 August 1909. p. 4. Retrieved 16 May 2016.

[before-3] 1 2 "The Rangitikei Seat". Otago Daily Times . No. 14624. 9 September 1909. p. 7. Retrieved 16 May 2016.

[4] "Rangitikei Election". The Press . Vol. 65, no. 13526. 13 September 1909. p. 8. Retrieved 16 May 2016.

[firstballot-5] 1 2 3 "The Rangitikei By-election". The Wanganui Herald . Vol. 44, no. 12876. 17 September 1909. p. 5. Retrieved 16 May 2016.

[firstballot2-6] "Final Returns". Taranaki Herald . Vol. 55, no. 14012. 17 September 1909. p. 3. Retrieved 16 May 2016.

[7] "The Electoral District of Rangitikei". Wanganui Herald . Vol. XXXIV, no. 12873. 13 September 1909. p. 1. Retrieved 16 May 2016.

[secondballot-8] 1 2 3 "The Rangitikei By-election". The Wanganui Herald . Vol. 44, no. 12882. 24 September 1909. p. 5. Retrieved 16 May 2016.

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v t e « (1853–1890) « By-elections in New Zealand in the Liberal Party era (1891–1911) » (1912–1938) »
11th Parliament	Northern Maori, 1891 Egmont, 1891 Newton, 1891 Te Aroha, 1891 Waikato, 1891 City of Christchurch, 1891 City of Wellington, 1892 Bruce, 1892 Rangitikei, 1892 Inangahua, 1893 Wanganui, 1893 Thames, 1893 City of Auckland, 1893
12th Parliament	Waitemata, 1894 Tuapeka, 1894 City of Auckland, 1895 City of Christchurch, 1896
13th Parliament	Wellington Suburbs, 1897 Awarua, 1897 City of Dunedin, 1897 City of Wellington, 1898 Mataura, 1898 Tuapeka, 1898 City of Wellington, 1899
14th Parliament	Otaki, 1900 City of Auckland, 1900 Waihemo, 1900 Northern Maori, 1901 City of Christchurch, 1901 Patea, Jul 1901 Patea, Nov 1901 Caversham, 1901
15th Parliament	Pahiatua, 1904 City of Wellington, 1905
16th Parliament	Westland, 1906 Manukau, 1906 Taranaki, 1907 Tuapeka, 1908
17th Parliament	Thames, 1909 Northern Maori, 1909 Rangitikei, 1909 Auckland East, 1910 Christchurch North, 1911