Christiana (House of Assembly of South Africa constituency)

Last updated
Christiana
Former constituency
for the South African House of Assembly
Province Transvaal
Electorate10,318 (1970)
Former constituency
Created 1920
Abolished 1974
Number of members1
Last MHA  H. J. D. van der Walt (NP)
Replaced bySchweizer-Reneke

Christiana was a constituency in the Transvaal Province of South Africa, which existed from 1920 to 1974. Named after the town of Christiana, it covered a rural area in the western Transvaal. Throughout its existence it elected one member to the House of Assembly and one to the Transvaal Provincial Council.

Contents

Franchise notes

When the Union of South Africa was formed in 1910, the electoral qualifications in use in each pre-existing colony were kept in place. In the Transvaal Colony, and its predecessor the South African Republic, the vote was restricted to white men, and as such, elections in the Transvaal Province were held on a whites-only franchise from the beginning. The franchise was also restricted by property and education qualifications until the 1933 general election, following the passage of the Women's Enfranchisement Act, 1930 and the Franchise Laws Amendment Act, 1931. From then on, the franchise was given to all white citizens aged 21 or over. Non-whites remained disenfranchised until the end of apartheid and the introduction of universal suffrage in 1994. [1]

History

Like most of the rural Transvaal, Christiana had a largely Afrikaans-speaking electorate. It was held for nearly its entire existence by the National Party, the exception being the period from 1934 to 1943, after J. B. M. Hertzog and Jan Smuts joined forces to create the United Party. Christiana MP Jan Johannes Wentzel joined the new party and successfully defended his seat in 1938, but retired at the 1943 general election, at which point the Herenigde Nasionale Party took the seat. In 1953, however, Wentzel came back, this time standing for the governing NP, and held the seat until 1970. In 1974, the constituency was replaced by one based in nearby Schweizer-Reneke, and Christiana's final MP, Hendrik Johannes Douw van der Walt, was elected to represent the new seat.

Members

ElectionMemberParty
1920 A. S. van Hees National
1921
1924 H. H. Moll
1929
1933 J. J. Wentzel
1934 United
1938
1943 W. D. Brink HNP
1948
1953 J. J. Wentzel National
1958
1961
1966
1970 H. J. D. van der Walt
1974 Constituency abolished

[2] [3]

Detailed results

Elections in the 1920s

General election 1920: Christiana
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
National A. S. van Hees 1,277 66.4 New
South African J. F. de Beer61732.1New
Independent A. J. van der Merwe291.5New
Majority 61034.3N/A
Turnout 1,92365.1N/A
National win (new seat)
General election 1921: Christiana
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
National A. S. van Hees 1,368 68.2 +1.8
South African F. F. Pienaar63931.8−0.3
Majority 61036.4+2.1
Turnout 2,00761.5−3.6
National hold Swing +1.1

References

  1. "EISA South Africa: Historical franchise arrangements". Eisa.org.za. Archived from the original on 9 May 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  2. Schoeman, B.M. (1977). Parlementêre verkiesings in Suid-Afrika 1910-1976. Pretoria: Aktuele Publikasies.
  3. Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa (1972). "House of Assembly" (vol. 5, pp. 617–636). Cape Town: Nasionale Opvoedkundige Uitgewery (Nasou).