1980 Dunedin mayoral election

1980 Dunedin mayoral election

←  1977 11 October 1980 1983  →
Turnout	21,744
Candidate Cliff Skeggs Peter Entwisle Party Citizens' Independent Popular vote 16,600 4,794 Percentage 76.34 22.04
Mayor before election Cliff Skeggs Elected mayor Cliff Skeggs

The 1980 Dunedin mayoral election was part of the New Zealand local elections held that same year. In 1980, elections were held for the Mayor of Dunedin plus other local government positions including twelve city councillors. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post electoral method.

Background

Cliff Skeggs was re-elected Mayor of Dunedin with a record majority. The Labour party did not contest the mayoralty for the first time since 1935. As such the contest was marked by low turnout. Skeggs sole opponent was local historian Peter Entwisle who stood only as part of a campaign against the building of an aluminium smelter at Aramoana. ^[1] The election also saw longtime Labour Party councillor Ethel McMillan defeated in a shock result.

Results

The following table shows the results for the election:

1980 Dunedin mayoral election ^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Citizens'	Cliff Skeggs	16,600	76.34	+31.90
	Independent	Peter Entwisle	4,794	22.04
Informal votes			350	1.60	−0.58
Majority			11,806	54.29	+39.93
Turnout			21,744

References

1. Gibb, J. (21 April 2018). "Obituary: Peter Malcolm William Entwisle". Otago Daily Times .
2. "Mayoral Voting". Otago Daily Times . No. 36785. 13 October 1980. p. 3.