1989 Christchurch mayoral election

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1989 Christchurch mayoral election
Christchurch coat of arms shield.svg
  1986 14 October 1989 1992  
Turnout121,680 (60.56%)
  Vicki Buck.jpg No image.png No image.png
Candidate Vicki Buck Morgan Fahey Margaret Murray
Party Independent United Citizens Christchurch Action
Popular vote63,82430,89125,666
Percentage52.4525.3921.09

1989 Christchurch mayoral election.svg
Results by ward

Mayor before election

Hamish Hay
Christchurch Citizens' Association

Elected mayor

Vicki Buck
Independent

The 1989 Christchurch mayoral election was part of the New Zealand local elections held that same year. In 1989, election were held for the mayor of Christchurch plus other local government positions. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post voting method.

Contents

Background

Incumbent mayor Hamish Hay had first entered the city council in 1959 and has had continuous service since then. For the last five terms, he had been mayor, and he had announced his mayoral candidacy in October 1988. Less than two months out from the election, he pulled out of the contest due to ill health. [1] [2]

There was deadlock on the city council with a four-way split in its membership. The Labour Party won a plurality of seats with seven seats, the United Citizens won seven, the new Christchurch Action ticket with six seats and the remaining three seats won by independent candidates. Prior to the election there was a schism on the right wing Citizens' Association resulting in two conservative tickets running against each other. [3] Christchurch Action was set up, comprising former councillors from districts that merged with the city as part of the 1989 local government reforms. [4]

Results

Hay was succeeded by Labour Party councillor Vicki Buck who became Christchurch's first female mayor. [5]

The following table gives the election results:

1989 Christchurch mayoral election [6] [7] [8] [9]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Independent Vicki Buck 63,824 52.45
United Citizens Morgan Fahey30,89125.39
Christchurch Action Margaret Murray 25,66621.09
McGillicuddy Serious Craig Young8990.74
Economic EuthenicsTubby Hansen4000.33−1.72
Informal votes13411.09−0.32
Majority 32,93327.07
Turnout 121,68060.56+2.56 approx

Results by ward

Vicki Buck polled highest in all but one of the Christchurch Wards, Margaret Murray won her own Waimairi ward, while Fahey did not get a plurality in any ward, his highest polling ward being Heathcote [10] . Polling by The Star suggested Buck would dominate a majority of the wards although the opposing candidates disputed the figures during the campaign. [11] [12]

Vicki BuckMorgan FaheyMargaret MurrayOthersTotal
Ward#%#%#%#%#
Burwood5,88558.802,26922.671,78217.80730.7310,009
Fendalton4,88441.993,54630.493,12626.88750.6411,631
Ferrymead6,05757.972,88527.611,36313.051430.6810,488
Hagley4,38259.141,90625.2798013.231421.927,410
Heathcote5,77153.783,30830.831,52614.221251.1610,730
Papanui5,17547.092,31921.103,37830.741181.0710,990
Pegasus6,11464.272,19023.021,09411.501151.219,513
Riccarton4,62444.212,51824.073,19430.541241.1910,460
Shirley5,30755.892,86130.131,23913.051180.949,496
Spreydon5,39956.562,77229.041,26913.291051.109,545
Waimairi4,44638.562,09318.154,91642.64740.6411,529
Wigram4,98157.941,99525.391,52017.681011.178,597
Total63,82452.4530,89125.3925,66621.091,2991.07121,680

City council election result

Christchurch city councillors elected
WardPartyElected
BurwoodIndependentCarole Evans*
IndependentMike Stevens
FendaltonUnited CitizensRon Wright*
Action Philip Carter
FerrymeadUnited CitizensDavid Cox*
LabourCharles Manning*
HagleyLabourLinda Constable*
Labour Denis O'Rourke*
HeathcoteUnited CitizensRex Arbuckle*
ActionOscar Alpers
PapanuiPapanui IndependentGordon Freeman
Papanui IndependentDes King
PegasusLabourDavid Close*
LabourNoala Massey*
RiccartonActionDavid Buist
ActionDerek Anderson
ShirleyUnited CitizensNewton Dodge
United CitizensDennis Rich*
SpreydonUnited CitizensMorgan Fahey*
LabourAlex Clark* [a]
WaimairiActionPat Harrow
ActionJohn Hanafin
WigramUnited CitizensMary Corbett
LabourIshwar Ganda

Footnotes: * denotes incumbents

Aftermath

Buck was elected the first ever female mayor of Christchurch, and four women were elected to the council. Margaret Murray and Morgan Fahey both conceded in a friendly manner in person on the night. Fahey, her nearest opponent, became the deputy mayor.

Despite losing the mayoralty, Action performed very well and Citizens' lost its overall majority on council. There was accusation that Action split the centre-right vote and lead to no overall control on the council. Because of the Citizens' animosity towards the action team Labour and Citizens' formed an alliance on the council which resulted in Action missing out on a fair share of committee chairmanships. [5] [14]

Dennis Rich retained his position as team leader after the election, but Labour's team leader Alex Clark was replaced by Pegasus councillor David Close after Clark expressed a preference to focus on his regional council seat. Clark was also unable to secure a committee chairmanship, even in transport, despite his advocacy for a city owned bus company. [14]

Although Labour candidate Arthur Adcock had won on election night by a margin of 19 votes, independent Mike Stevens refused to concede and sought multiple rounds of recounts, eventually resulting in Adcock losing his seat to Stevens. [15] This meant Labour's election night plurality of seats was also lost. There was also legal action in the Papanui ward over the nature of election material. [16]

Mayor Buck initially tried to get councillors to sit in alphabetical order next to each other, however, councillors ended up moving their own name plates around to sit in party/team blocs. [17]

Notes

  1. Clark was elected on a Labour Party ticket, but resigned from the party within a week of the election and became an independent. [13]

References

  1. Forrester, Kay (7 June 1989). "Councillors show interest". The Press . p. 9. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  2. "Sir Hamish steps aside". The Press . 23 August 1989. p. 16. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  3. Forrester, Kay (16 October 1989). "Split council still to set battle lines". The Press . p. 1.
  4. Scanlon, Sean; Crean, Mike (24 April 2004). "Cutting their ties; Two parties in control". The Press . p. D11.
  5. 1 2 Forrester, Kay (16 October 1989). "Chch elects first woman as Mayor". The Press . p. 1. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  6. "Mayoralty figures". The Press . 16 October 1989. p. 3.
  7. "Declaration of results of elections: Christchurch City". The Press . 28 October 1989. p. 88. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  8. Robertson, Max (20 October 2004). "Report of the Electoral Officer" (PDF). Christchurch City Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 October 2008. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  9. "Sir Hamish 'survives'". The Press . 13 October 1986. p. 1.
  10. "CHRISTCHURCH MAYORALTY: FINAL PRELIMINARY RESULTS". The Press . 17 October 1989. p. 7.
  11. "Doubt cast on poll result". The Press . 27 September 1989. p. 1.
  12. "Election 'poll that counts'". The Press . 11 October 1989. p. 1.
  13. Forrester, Kay (21 October 1989). "Clark hands in his party ticket". The Press . p. 1. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
  14. 1 2 "Council alliance sews up top jobs". The Press . 7 November 1989. p. 1. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  15. "Public notices". The Press . 23 December 1989. p. 43. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  16. "Council seating, top jobs arranged". The Press . 8 November 1989. p. 7. Retrieved 13 June 2024.