Newcastle (House of Assembly of South Africa constituency)

Last updated
Newcastle
Former constituency
for the South African House of Assembly
SA-1981-Newcastle.png
Location of Newcastle within South Africa (1981)
Province Natal
Electorate17,472 (1989)
Former constituency
Created 1910
Abolished 1994
Number of members1
Last MHA  Adriaan Blaas (NP)
Replaced by KwaZulu-Natal

Newcastle was a constituency in the Natal Province of South Africa, which existed from 1910 to 1994. It covered a region of northwestern Natal centred on its namesake town. Throughout its existence it elected one member to the House of Assembly.

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. The franchise used in the Natal Colony, while theoretically not restricted by race, was significantly less liberal than that of the Cape, and no more than a few hundred non-white electors ever qualified. In 1908, an estimated 200 of the 22,786 electors in the colony were of non-European descent, and by 1935, only one remained. [1] By 1958, when the last non-white voters in the Cape were taken off the rolls, Natal too had an all-white electorate. 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, which remained the case until the end of apartheid and the introduction of universal suffrage in 1994. [2]

History

While most of Natal's white population (and, consequently, most of its electorate during the pre-1994 era) was English-speaking, the northwest of the province was more mixed, and Newcastle had a large Afrikaner presence throughout its existence. This made its politics (along with the neighbouring seats of Klip River and Vryheid) different from those of Natal as a whole, and the National Party had a significant foothold in the seat from its founding. In the early years, however, this foothold was never quite enough to dislodge the South African Party, whose candidates held the seat throughout the party's existence. When it merged into the United Party in 1934, Newcastle MP Overbeek Radyn Nel came along, and from 1938 onwards, Newcastle was a bellwether seat, always held by the governing party of the day. For most of that period, that meant the National Party, which captured it as part of their nationwide advance in 1948 and held it for the remainder of its existence. Unlike some other NP safe seats, Newcastle never went fully unopposed, but in 1977 and 1981, its MPs faced only token opposition from the Herstigte Nasionale Party, and in 1987 and 1989 the Conservative Party formed the main opposition in the seat.

Members

ElectionMemberParty
1910 H. G. Bosman South African
1915 T. J. Nel
1920
1921
1924 O. R. Nel
1929
1933
1934 United
1938
1941 byR. B. Robertson
1943
1948 W. A. Maree National
1953
1958
1961
1966
1968 byP. J. van B. Viljoen
1970
1974
1977
1981 W. J. Schoeman
1987
1989 Adriaan Blaas
1994 Constituency abolished

[3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

Detailed results

Elections in the 1910s

General election 1910: Newcastle
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
South African H. J. Bosman 533 53.0 New
Independent E. W. Noyce47347.0New
Majority 606.0N/A
South African win (new seat)
General election 1915: Newcastle
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
South African T. J. Nel 473 39.2 −13.8
Unionist R. H. Struben39532.8New
National A. T. Spies33828.0New
Majority 786.4N/A
Turnout 1,20665.7N/A
South African hold Swing N/A

Elections in the 1920s

General election 1920: Newcastle
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
South African T. J. Nel 682 54.2 +15.0
National J. H. B. Wessels57645.8+17.8
Majority 1068.4N/A
Turnout 1,25873.8+8.1
South African hold Swing N/A
General election 1921: Newcastle
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
South African T. J. Nel 715 53.7 −0.5
National J. J. Muller61646.3+0.5
Majority 997.4−1.0
Turnout 1,33172.6−1.2
South African hold Swing -0.5

References

  1. May, H.J. (1955). The South African Constitution. 3rd ed. Cape Town: Juta & Co.
  2. "EISA South Africa: Historical franchise arrangements". Eisa.org.za. Archived from the original on 9 May 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  3. Schoeman, B.M. (1977). Parlementêre verkiesings in Suid-Afrika 1910-1976. Pretoria: Aktuele Publikasies.
  4. Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa (1972). "House of Assembly" (vol. 5, pp. 617–636). Cape Town: Nasionale Opvoedkundige Uitgewery (Nasou).
  5. South Africa 1980/81: Official Yearbook of the Republic of South Africa. Johannesburg: Chris van Rensburg Publications.
  6. South Africa 1983: Official Yearbook of the Republic of South Africa. Johannesburg: Chris van Rensburg Publications.
  7. Government Gazette of South Africa, No. 10751. 22 May 1987. Pretoria: Government of South Africa.
  8. Government Gazette of South Africa, No. 12109. 20 September 1989. Pretoria: Government of South Africa.