Dunedin Country

Last updated

Dunedin Country was a parliamentary electorate in the rural area surrounding the city of Dunedin in Otago, New Zealand, from 1853 to 1860. It was a two-member electorate and was represented by a total of five members of parliament.

Contents

Population centres

The New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, passed by the British government, allowed New Zealand to establish a representative government. The initial 24 New Zealand electorates were defined by Governor George Grey in March 1853. Dunedin Country was one of the initial two-member electorates. [1] The electorate covered the Otago Province in its entirety with the exclusion of Dunedin, which was represented through the Town of Dunedin electorate. [2] The area was sparsely populated, but during its existence, Invercargill was laid out in 1856. [3]

The Constitution Act also allowed the House of Representatives to establish new electorates, and this was first done in 1858, when four new electorates were formed by splitting existing electorates. [4] Wallace was one of those four electorates, and it was established by splitting the Dunedin Country electorate. [5]

In the 1860 electoral redistribution, the Dunedin Country electorate was abolished, and its area split between the Wallace, Bruce, and Hampden electorates. [6]

History

Three people were nominated for the first election in 1853, but only William Cutten and John Cargill accepted the nomination. Edward McGlashan stated that he was not available to represent the electorate. The returning officer therefore declared Cutten and Cargill elected. [7] Cutten resigned in 1855 before the end of the term of the term of the 1st New Zealand Parliament citing business pressure; [8] no by-election was held. [9] John Cargill and his father William were elected unopposed on 11 December 1855 for the 2nd New Zealand Parliament. [10] John and William resigned in 1858 and October 1859, respectively. The first vacancy was filled by John Parkin Taylor, who retired from parliament at the end of this term. The second vacancy was filled by Thomas Gillies, who was declared elected unopposed. [11] [12]

Members of Parliament

The electorate was represented by five members of parliament. [13]

ElectionWinners
1853 election William Cutten John Cargill
1855 election William Cargill
1858 by-election John Parkin Taylor
1860 by-election Thomas Gillies
(Electorate abolished 1860; see Wallace, Bruce, and Hampden)

Election results

Only one election in the Dunedin Country electorate was contested. At the two general elections and the 1860 by-election, the candidates were declared elected unopposed.

1858 by-election

1858 Dunedin Country by-election [14]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Independent John Taylor 73 61.3
Independent Peter Napier4638.7
Turnout 119
Majority27

Notes

  1. McRobie 1989, pp. 29f.
  2. McRobie 1989, p. 31.
  3. "Invercargill". Ministry for Culture and Heritage . Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  4. McRobie 1989, p. 29.
  5. McRobie 1989, pp. 29–31.
  6. McRobie 1989, pp. 33–35.
  7. "Election of Members for the Country District to Serve in the General Assembly". Otago Witness (125). 8 October 1853. p. 2. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
  8. Scholefield 1940, p. 188.
  9. Wilson 1985, pp. 191, 262.
  10. "Election of Members for the House of Representatives". Otago Witness (212). 15 December 1855. p. 3. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  11. Wilson 1985, p. 199.
  12. "Dunedin Country District". Otago Witness (435). 31 March 1860. p. 5. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
  13. Wilson 1985, p. 262.
  14. "Otago". Lyttelton Times . IX (590). 30 June 1858. p. 4. Retrieved 3 May 2013.

Related Research Articles

William Henry Cutten was a New Zealand politician from the Otago region.

The 2nd New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. It opened on 15 April 1856, following New Zealand's 1855 election. It was dissolved on 5 November 1860 in preparation for 1860–61 election. The 2nd Parliament was the first under which New Zealand had responsible government, meaning that unlike previously, the Cabinet was chosen by Parliament rather than by the Governor.

William Cargill (New Zealand politician) 19th-century New Zealand politician

William Walter Cargill was the founder of the Otago settlement in New Zealand, after serving as an officer in the British Army. He was a member of parliament and Otago's first Superintendent.

1899 New Zealand general election

The New Zealand general election of 1899 was held on 6 and 19 December in the European and Māori electorates, respectively, to elect 74 MPs to the 14th session of the New Zealand Parliament. The election was again won by the Liberal Party, and Richard Seddon remained Prime Minister.

Wallace was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate. It was established in 1858, the first election held in 1859, and existed until 1996. For a time, it was represented by two members. In total, there were 18 Members of Parliament from the Wallace electorate.

Omata was a New Zealand electorate. It was located in Taranaki and based on the township of Omata. One of the original 24 electorates, it existed from 1853 to 1870.

Wanganui and Rangitikei is a former parliamentary electorate that existed from 1853 to 1860. It was represented by two Members of Parliament.

Bruce was a rural parliamentary electorate in the Otago region of New Zealand, from 1861 to 1922. For part of the 1860s with the influx to Otago of gold-miners it was a multi-member constituency with two members.

Caversham was a parliamentary electorate in the city of Dunedin in the Otago region of New Zealand, from 1866 to 1908.

Taieri is a parliamentary electorate in the Otago region of New Zealand, initially from 1866 to 1911, and was later recreated during the 2019/20 electoral redistribution ahead of the 2020 election.

Christchurch Country was a parliamentary electorate in the Canterbury region of New Zealand from 1853 to 1860. It was thus one of the original 24 electorates used for the 1st New Zealand Parliament.

City of Dunedin, during the first two parliaments called Town of Dunedin, was a parliamentary electorate in Dunedin in Otago, New Zealand. It was one of the original electorates created in 1853 and existed, with two breaks, until 1905. The first break, from 1862 to 1866, was caused by an influx of people through the Otago Gold Rush, when many new electorates were formed in Otago. The second break occurred from 1881 to 1890. It was the only New Zealand electorate that was created as a single-member, two-member and three member electorate.

Dunedin and Suburbs South was a parliamentary electorate in the city of Dunedin in Otago, New Zealand from 1862 to 1866. From 1863 it was a multi-member electorate.

Roslyn was a parliamentary electorate in the city of Dunedin in the Otago region of New Zealand from 1866 to 1890.

Suburbs of Auckland was a parliamentary electorate in Auckland, New Zealand from 1853 to 1860.

Edward McGlashan was a 19th-century Member of Parliament in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.

John Hyde Harris New Zealand politician

John Hyde Harris was a 19th-century New Zealand politician. Born in England, he came to Dunedin as a young man and practised as a lawyer, and was then a judge. He entered provincial politics and was elected as the fourth Superintendent of the Otago Province. He then became Mayor of Dunedin and was called to the Legislative Council.

1858 Dunedin Country by-election New Zealand by-election

The Dunedin Country by-election 1858 was a by-election held in the multi-member Dunedin Country electorate during the 2nd New Zealand Parliament, on 16 June 1858. The by-election was caused by the resignation of incumbent MP John Cargill and was won by John Taylor.

The Dunedin Country by-election 1860 was a by-election held in the multi-member Dunedin Country electorate during the 2nd New Zealand Parliament. The by-election was caused by the resignation of incumbent MP William Cargill. The nomination meeting was held on 28 March and as Thomas Gillies was the only person proposed, he was declared elected unopposed.

1862 Bruce by-election New Zealand by-election

The Bruce by-election 1862 was a by-election held in the multi-member Bruce electorate during the 3rd New Zealand Parliament, on 31 July 1862. The by-election was caused by the death of incumbent MP Charles Kettle on 5 June, and was won by Edward Cargill.

References