1980 Northern Maori by-election

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1980 Northern Maori by-election
Flag of New Zealand.svg
  1978 general 7 June 1980 (1980-06-07) 1981 general  
Turnout6,831 (41.38%)
  No image.png Matiu Rata.jpg No image.png
Candidate Bruce Gregory Matiu Rata Joe Toia
Party Labour Mana Motuhake Social Credit
Popular vote3,5802,589560
Percentage52.4137.908.20

Member before election

Matiu Rata
Labour

Elected Member

Bruce Gregory
Labour

The Northern Maori by-election of 1980 was a by-election for the Northern Maori electorate during the 39th New Zealand Parliament. It was prompted on 29 April by the resignation of Matiu Rata, a former member of the Labour Party who was establishing a new group, Mana Motuhake. Rata believed that contesting a by-election would give him a mandate for his change of allegiance. In the end, however, his plan backfired when the seat was won by Bruce Gregory, his replacement as the Labour Party candidate.

Contents

It was held the same day as another by-election in Onehunga. [1]

Candidates

Labour Party

As Northern Maori was a safe Labour seat, having held it since 1938 election, there was a large amount of interest in the candidacy. The sheer geographic size of the electorate also caused interest from candidates to be spread widely, Northern Maori stretched from Cape Reinga in the north to Panmure in the south. [2]

A total of 11 candidates were nominated: [3] [4]

The selection process was completed on 4 May, where Bruce Gregory was selected. [5]

Mana Motuhake

After becoming dissatisfied with the Labour Party's Māori policies Matiu Rata had begun to lose the confidence of his colleagues. Eventually he was deposed as chairman of Labour's Maori Affairs committee and removed from Labour's front bench, prompting him to resign from the party. He then formed his own party, Mana Motuhake which would advocate for Maori self-determination. To help in the establishment of the party, Rata sought a by-election to gain voter approval for his new party and its agenda. [6]

Social Credit

Anticipating that Rata would force a by-election, the Social Credit Party selected Joe Toia, a Dargaville forestry foreman, in March 1980. Toia was the Māori representative on the party's dominion council and had contested the seat at the last three elections. [7] [8] Toia was previously a Labour Party member and had been beaten by Rata for the Labour nomination at the 1963 Northern Maori by-election. [9]

Others

The National Party did not contest the election, a decision that was criticised by Social Credit deputy-leader Jeremy Dwyer as "chickening out". [10] The Values Party decided not to stand a candidate in Northern Maori. Party leader Margaret Crozier endorsed Rata, saying that Values agreed with his aim for Maori self-determination which was already part of Values Party policy. [11] Wallace Hetaraka, a carver and craft shop owner, stood for the Cheer Up Party (a joke party). [12]

Results

The following table gives the election results:

1980 Northern Maori by-election [13]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Bruce Gregory 3,580 52.41
Mana Motuhake Matiu Rata 2,58937.90
Social Credit Joe Toia5608.20
Cheer UpWallace Hetaraka801.17
Christian Democratic Tom Weal 130.19
Reform PartyP Te W Warner90.13
Majority99114.51
Turnout 6,83141.38
Labour hold Swing

Notes

  1. "Same day for by-elections". The New Zealand Herald . 26 April 1980. p. 1.
  2. McRobie 1989, p. 138.
  3. "Ex-National Man Seeks Labour Nod". The New Zealand Herald . 30 April 1980. p. 1.
  4. "Two More Seek Vote". The New Zealand Herald . 1 May 1980. p. 3.
  5. "Labour Going For the Doctor". The New Zealand Herald . 5 May 1980. p. 1.
  6. "Matiu Rata: Biography". NZ History. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  7. "Maori Socred candidate". The Press . 12 March 1980. p. 3.
  8. "Labour's candidate set for Northern victory". The Press . 6 June 1980. p. 14.
  9. "Candidate Next Week". The New Zealand Herald . 16 February 1963. p. 3.
  10. "National Poll 'Sheer Expediency'". The New Zealand Herald . 1 May 1980. p. 3.
  11. "No Values Entry". The New Zealand Herald . 8 May 1980. p. 8.
  12. "Cheer up!". The Press . 28 May 1980. p. 2.
  13. Norton 1988, p. 398.

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References