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Electorates in New Zealand were initially created for election to the first parliament in 1853. Since then there have been numerous changes, perhaps the largest being in 1996 for the introduction of MMP.
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The first four Māori electorates were established for special elections in 1868, during the term of the fourth parliament. These four seats remained until the country's change to a mixed-member proportional system in 1996, when a large number of general electorate seats were changed as well.
| Electorate name | Area | Established | Abolished | Replaced with |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Maori | Northland and Auckland | 1868 | 1996 | Te Tai Tokerau |
| Eastern Maori | Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Gisborne | 1868 | 1996 | Te Tai Rawhiti and Te Puku O Te Whenua |
| Western Maori | Taranaki, Manawatū-Whanganui | 1868 | 1996 | Te Tai Hauāuru and Te Puku O Te Whenua |
| Southern Maori | South Island and Stewart Island | 1868 | 1996 | Te Tai Tonga and Te Puku O Te Whenua |
| Hauraki | Auckland and Waikato | 1999 | 2002 | Tāmaki Makaurau and Tainui |
| Tainui | Auckland and Waikato | 2002 | 2008 | Hauraki-Waikato |
| Te Puku O Te Whenua | Lower North Island | 1996 | 1999 | Ikaroa-Rāwhiti |
| Te Tai Rawhiti | Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and Waikato | 1996 | 1999 | Waiariki and Ikaroa-Rāwhiti |
The gold mining electorates were created to represent the significant mining populations of the West Coast and Otago in the 1860s.
| Electorate name | Area | Established | Abolished |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold Field Towns | Queenstown, Arrowtown, Cromwell, Clyde, Alexandra, Dunstan Creek, Roxburgh, Hamiltons, Lawrence and Havelock | 1865 | 1870 |
| Gold Fields | Various gold mining areas across standard electorates in the province of Otago during the Otago Gold Rush | 1862 | 1870 |
| Westland Boroughs | Greymouth and Hokitika boroughs | 1867 | 1870 |
The 1996 New Zealand general election was held on 12 October 1996 to determine the composition of the 45th New Zealand Parliament. It was notable for being the first election to be held under the new mixed-member proportional (MMP) electoral system, and produced a parliament considerably more diverse than previous elections. Under the new MMP system, 65 members were elected in single-member districts by first-past-the-post voting, while a further 55 "top-up" members were allocated from closed lists to achieve a proportional distribution based on each party's share of the nationwide party vote.
The 1993 New Zealand general election was held on 6 November 1993 to determine the composition of the 44th New Zealand Parliament. Voters elected 99 members to the House of Representatives, up from 97 members at the 1990 election. The election was held concurrently with an electoral reform referendum to replace the first-past-the-post system, with all members elected from single-member electorates, with mixed-member proportional representation. It saw the governing National Party, led by Jim Bolger, win a second term in office, despite a major swing away from National in both seats and votes, and the carrying of the referendum by 53.9% to 46.1%.
An electorate or electoral district is a geographic constituency used for electing a member (MP) to the New Zealand Parliament. The size of electorates is determined such that all electorates have approximately the same population.
Aoraki was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate that existed for four parliamentary terms from 1996 to 2008. It was held by Jim Sutton of the Labour Party for three terms, and the remaining term by Jo Goodhew of the National Party. It was located in the South Island, covering southern Canterbury and northern Otago. It was named after the mountain Aoraki / Mount Cook.
The New Zealand electoral system has been mixed-member proportional (MMP) since the 1996 election. MMP was introduced following a referendum in 1993. It replaced the first-past-the-post (FPP) system New Zealand had previously used for most of its history. Under MMP, New Zealanders have two secret ballot votes to elect members of Parliament (MPs). The first vote is for a candidate from an electorate, a geographic electoral district. The second is the party vote for the political party the voter wants to form the government.
Maungakiekie is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. The current MP for Maungakiekie is Greg Fleming of the National Party. The electorate's name comes from Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill, a large and symbolically important hill at the western end of the seat.
Voting in New Zealand was introduced after colonisation by British settlers. The first New Zealand Constitution Act was passed in 1852, and the first parliamentary elections were held the following year.
Banks Peninsula is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate which initially existed from 1996 to 2008, and was later recreated in 2020 ahead of the 2020 election. It was held by National's David Carter for the initial term, and then by Labour's Ruth Dyson from 1999 to 2008. As of 2023, the seat is currently held by National's Vanessa Weenink.
Coromandel is a New Zealand electoral division returning one member to the House of Representatives. It is currently represented by Scott Simpson, a member of the National Party.
East Coast Bays is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate. It was first formed in 1972 and has existed apart from a break lasting two parliamentary terms. The electorate has been held by Erica Stanford of the National Party since the 2017 general election.
Epsom is a New Zealand electorate in Auckland, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. Since the 2014 general election, Epsom has been represented by David Seymour, the leader of the ACT Party.
Hamilton East is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate.
Manukau East was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate that returned one member of parliament to the House of Representatives. It was first formed for the 1996 election. Between the 2014 election and the 2020 electorate adjustment it was held by Jenny Salesa, a member of the Labour Party, who also won the replacement Panmure-Ōtāhuhu seat in the 2020 election.
Port Waikato is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate which existed for four parliamentary terms from 1996 to 2008, and was recreated by the 2019/20 electoral redistribution ahead of the 2020 election. It was held by Bill Birch for one term, and by Paul Hutchison for the following three terms. From 2020, it was held by Andrew Bayly. All of these were members of the National Party.
Remutaka is an electorate returning one member to the New Zealand House of Representatives. Since the 2008 general election, the seat has been represented by Chris Hipkins, who served as Prime Minister of New Zealand and is currently the Leader of the Opposition.
Rodney was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the House of Representatives. The last MP for Rodney was Mark Mitchell of the National Party. He held this position from 2011 until the electorate was replaced with Whangaparāoa in 2020. Mitchell stood for and won that seat.
Te Atatū is a parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. The current MP for Te Atatū is Phil Twyford of the Labour Party.
Waitakere was a parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. The electorate was first formed for the 1946 election and existed until 2014, with breaks from 1969 to 1978 and from 1987 to 1993. The last MP for Waitakere was Paula Bennett of the National Party, who had held this position since the 2008 election.
Raglan is a former New Zealand parliamentary electorate. It existed for three periods between 1861 and 1996 and during that time, it was represented by 13 Members of Parliament.
The 50th New Zealand Parliament was elected at the 2011 general election. It had 121 members, and was in place from December 2011 until September 2014, followed by the 2014 general election. The first sitting of the 50th Parliament was held on 20 December 2011, where members were sworn in and Lockwood Smith was elected Speaker of the House. This was followed by the speech from the throne on 21 December. John Key continued to lead the Fifth National Government. Following the resignation of Smith, David Carter was elected Speaker.
