Waimarino (electorate)

Waimarino was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate that existed from 1911 to 1954, and from 1963 to 1972. It was rural in nature and was represented by four Members of Parliament.

Population centres

In the 1911 electoral redistribution, the North Island gained a further seat from the South Island due to faster population growth. In addition, there were substantial population movements within each island, and significant changes resulted from this. Only four electorates were unaltered, five electorates were abolished, one former electorate was re-established, and four electorates, including Waimarino, were created for the first time. ^[1]

The Waimarino electorate was used in its initial form for the 1911 and 1914 elections. ^[2] The electorate was rural without any urban areas. ^[3] For the 1914 election, 73 polling stations were used, and at only 15 of them were more than 100 votes cast. These polling stations were in Taihape (878 votes), Ohakune (449), Raetihi (361), Manunui (331), Kakahi (279), Rangataua town hall (273), Ōwhango (270), Ohakune East (167), Fordell (163), Raurimu (158), Horopito (151), Upukongaroa [sic] (127), Umumuri (126), Piriaka (111), and Mataroa (107). ^[4] The electorate's area stretched from the South Taranaki Bight to Lake Taupō (but not Taupō itself), and from Taihape in the south-east to just outside Taumarunui in the north-west. ^[5]

In the 1918 Electoral Redistribution, the electorate moved further north. It no longer bordered onto the coast; that area was taken up by Rangitīkei, which incorporated Taihape. Taumarunui was now within the electorate. ^[6]

The 1922 Electoral Redistribution resulted in only minimal boundary changes. Significantly, for the first time, part of the population in the electorate was classed as urban (2,144 of 14,587 people, or 14.7%). ^[7]

The 1927 Electoral Redistribution, which took effect with the 1928 election, resulted in more significant boundary changes. The southern boundary moved further north, the boundary near Lake Taupō moved significantly further south, and land was gained in the north-west to near the North Taranaki Bight including the town of Ōhura. There was a slight decrease in the proportion of the population that was classed as urban (to 13.6%). ^[8]

The 1937 Electoral Redistribution, which took effect with the 1938 election, resulted in more boundary changes. Taihape moved back into the Waimarino electorate. The easternmost part of the electorate went to the Rotorua electorate including Tūrangi. In the north, some area was gained from the Waitomo electorate. The proportion of the population classed as urban increased to 24.5%. ^[9]

The 1946 Electoral Redistribution, which took effect with the 1946 election, resulted in very significant boundary changes. In 1945, the country quota had been abolished and as a result, mostly rural electorates like Waimarino had to increase significantly in area to compensate for this. Waimarino grew slightly to the south, significantly to the east, and very significantly to the north, and somewhat to the north-west. For the first time, Taupō was fully located within the electorate. ^[10]

In the 1952 Electoral Redistribution, Waimarino was abolished and the area divided between Rotorua, Waitomo, Patea, and Rangitīkei. This took effect with the 1954 election. ^[11]

Through the 1962 Electoral Redistribution, Waimarino was re-established mostly from areas that previously belonged to Patea and Waitomo, but also small areas that had belonged to Stratford and Egmont. This took effect with the 1963 election. It had again a coastal boundary with the South Taranaki Bight. The western boundary stopped just short of Patea. At the eastern end, Bulls came for the first time into the electorate. In the north, the electorate extended as far as Lake Taupō. Taumarunui was also again included within the electorate. ^[12]

The 1967 Electoral Redistribution, which took effect with the 1969 election, saw the electorate lose some area to Egmont, but gain some area from Waitomo (including Ōhura) and Taupo. ^[13]

In the 1972 Electoral Redistribution, Waimarino was abolished and the area divided mostly between Rangitīkei and King Country. ^[14]

History

The electorate of Waimarino was first created during the 1911 Electoral Redistribution. The South Island lost one electorate to the North Island in the redistribution, resulting in 42 and 34 European electorates, respectively. Significant population movements within the North Island resulted in significant adjustments, with only four electorates remaining unchanged. ^[3] The Waimarino electorate initially covered areas that were previously covered by Taumarunui, Hawke's Bay, and Rangitikei. ^[15]

Arthur Remington of the Liberal Party had held the Rangitikei electorate, but he died on 17 August 1909. ^[16] The resulting 1909 by-election was contested by five candidates, with Frank Hockly as one of the opposition candidates leading Robert William Smith for the government by 1548 votes to 1055. ^{[17] [18]} At the time, the Second Ballot Act 1908 applied and since Hockly had not achieved an absolute majority, a second ballot between the two leading contenders was required. ^[19] In the second contest, Smith had a majority of 400 votes over Hockly and was thus declared elected. ^[20]

In the 1911 election, three candidates contested the new Waimarino electorate: Smith for the Liberal government, Hockly as the opposition candidate, and Joseph Ivess as an Independent Liberal. ^[21] Smith and Hockly progressed to the second ballot, ^[22] which was won by Smith with a 480 votes majority. ^{[23] [24]} In the 1922 election, Smith was defeated by Labour's Frank Langstone. In the 1925 election, Smith won it back, but was defeated again by Langstone in the 1928 election. ^[25]

William Henry Wackrow, who had been nominated in 1922 for the Liberal Party in the Rotorua electorate ^[26] but who withdrew shortly before the election ^[27] unsuccessfully challenged Langstone in the 1931 election for the United Party. ^[28]

Langstone transferred to the Auckland electorate of Roskill in the 1946 election, ^[29] and Paddy Kearins became the new Labour representative. ^[30] In 1953 Kearins crossed the floor of parliament and voted with the government to support the Licensing Amendment Bill (No. 2). This Bill proposed that the licensing of the King Country, part of Kearins' electorate, be subject to a referendum. ^{[31] [32]} Following the 1952 Electoral Redistribution, Kearins' electorate of Waimarino was abolished, which took effect for the 1954 election. The northern part of the electorate went to Rotorua, which included the towns of Taupō (which was previously located in Waimarino), Rotorua, and Tokoroa. ^[33] However, at the candidate selection for Rotorua, Ray Boord won the nomination over Kearins and was subsequently elected, ^[34] and "Labour lost its only farming voice... sacrificed by the party machine". ^{[35] [36] [37] [38] [39]} The central and southern parts of the Waimarino electorate were split between Waitomo, Patea, and Rangitikei. ^[40]

The 1962 Electoral Redistribution saw the re-establishment of the Waimarino electorate, which took effect with the 1963 election. National's Roy Jack, who had previously represented Patea, was the representative. ^[41] Following the 1967 Electoral Redistribution, Waimarino was abolished, which took effect for the 1969 election. ^[42]

Members of Parliament

The electorate was represented by four Members of Parliament. ^[43]

Key

  Liberal   Labour   National

Election	Winner
1911 election		Robert William Smith
1914 election
1919 election
1922 election		Frank Langstone
1925 election		Robert William Smith (2nd period)
1928 election		Frank Langstone (2nd period)
1931 election
1935 election
1938 election
1943 election
1946 election		Paddy Kearins
1949 election
1951 election
(Electorate abolished 1954–1963, see Rotorua, Waitomo, Patea, and Rangitikei)
1963 election		Roy Jack
1966 election
1969 election
(Electorate abolished 1972, see Rangitikei and King Country)

Election results

1969 election

1969 general election: Waimarino ^[44]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Roy Jack	7,939	50.73	+0.54
	Labour	Shaun Alex Cameron	5,726	36.59	+5.89
	Social Credit	Graham Ross Dempsey	1,724	11.01
	Country Party	Clifford Stanley Emeny	258	1.64
Majority			2,213	14.14	−5.34
Turnout			15,647	87.60	−1.96
Registered electors			17,860

1966 election

1966 general election: Waimarino ^[44]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Roy Jack	6,416	50.19	+0.87
	Labour	Shaun Alex Cameron	3,925	30.70
	Social Credit	L V Luford	2,442	19.10
Majority			2,491	19.48	+6.29
Turnout			12,783	85.64	−3.58
Registered electors			14,925

1963 election

1963 general election: Waimarino ^[44]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Roy Jack	6,673	49.32
	Labour	Olive Smuts-Kennedy	4,888	36.12
	Social Credit	Terence Gregory Mullins	1,721	12.72
	Liberal	John Duggan	247	1.82
Majority			1,785	13.19
Turnout			13,529	89.22
Registered electors			15,162

1951 election

1951 general election: Waimarino ^[44]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Paddy Kearins	7,456	50.23	−0.47
	National	Arthur MacPherson	7,389	49.77	+0.47
Majority			67	0.45	−0.95
Turnout			14,845	86.88	−5.16
Registered electors			17,086

1949 election

1949 general election: Waimarino ^[45]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Paddy Kearins	7,319	50.70	−1.96
	National	Arthur MacPherson	7,117	49.30
Majority			202	1.40	−3.90
Turnout			14,436	92.04	−0.93
Registered electors			15,683

1946 election

1946 general election: Waimarino ^[46]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Paddy Kearins	6,755	52.66
	National	Norman Robert Hill	6,074	47.34
Majority			681	5.30
Turnout			12,829	92.97	−0.34
Registered electors			13,798

1943 election

1943 general election: Waimarino ^[47]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Frank Langstone	5,352	54.70	−9.18
	National	Roger Oswald Montgomerie	3,948	40.35
	People's Movement	Digby Perrett	381	3.89
Informal votes			102	1.04	+0.42
Majority			1,404	14.35	−14.05
Turnout			9,783	93.31	−0.33
Registered electors			10,484

1938 election

1938 general election: Waimarino ^[48]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Frank Langstone	6,613	63.88	+3.82
	National	Cecil Boles	3,673	35.48	−1.95
Informal votes			65	0.62	−0.02
Majority			2,940	28.40	−5.77
Turnout			10,351	93.64	+0.23
Registered electors			11,053

1935 election

1935 general election: Waimarino ^[49]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Frank Langstone	4,945	60.06	+6.25
	Reform	Cecil Boles	3,082	37.43
	United	Henry William Bucknall Littlewood	206	2.50
Informal votes			53	0.64	+0.06
Majority			1,863	22.63	+15.01
Turnout			8,286	93.41	+9.85
Registered electors			8,870

1931 election

1931 general election: Waimarino ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Frank Langstone	4,174	53.81	+7.42
	United	William Henry Wackrow	3,583	46.19
Informal votes			45	0.58	−0.02
Majority			591	7.62	−5.00
Turnout			7,802	83.56	−1.30
Registered electors			9,337

1928 election

1928 general election: Waimarino ^[50]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Frank Langstone	3,620	46.39	−2.43
	United	Robert William Smith	2,635	33.77	−16.93
	Independent	James Georgetti	1,500	19.22
Informal votes			47	0.60	+0.12
Majority			985	12.62
Turnout			7,802	84.86	−5.04
Registered electors			9,193

1925 election

1925 general election: Waimarino ^[51]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Robert William Smith	3,751	50.70	+22.59
	Labour	Frank Langstone	3,611	48.82	+8.32
Informal votes			36	0.48	−0.45
Majority			140	1.89
Turnout			7,398	89.90	+2.84
Registered electors			8,229

1922 election

1922 general election: Waimarino ^[52]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Frank Langstone	2,900	40.50	−3.75
	Liberal	Robert William Smith	2,013	28.11	−27.64
	Reform	David Donald McLean	1,662	23.21
	Liberal–Labour	George James Goldfinch	507	7.08
	Independent Liberal	Henry William Bucknall Littlewood	10	0.13
Informal votes			67	0.93	−0.46
Majority			887	12.38
Turnout			7,159	87.06	+11.55
Registered electors			8,223

1919 election

1919 general election: Waimarino ^{[53] [54]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Robert William Smith	3,116	55.75	−10.36
	Labour	Frank Langstone	2,473	44.25
Informal votes			79	1.39	+0.49
Majority			643	11.50	−20.72
Turnout			5,668	75.51	+7.49
Registered electors			7,506

1914 election

1914 general election: Waimarino ^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Robert William Smith	4,093	66.11	+16.85
	Reform	Hugh Montgomerie Speed	2,098	33.89
Informal votes			56	0.90	−0.13
Majority			1,995	32.22	+25.81
Turnout			6,247	68.02	−2.97
Registered electors			9,184

1911 election

1911 general election: Waimarino, first ballot ^[55]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Robert William Smith	2,805	49.26
	Reform	Frank Hockly	2,440	42.85
	Independent Liberal	Joseph Ivess	449	7.89
Informal votes			59	1.03
Majority			365	6.41
Turnout			5,753	70.99
Registered electors			8,104

1911 general election: Waimarino, second ballot ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Robert William Smith	3,071	54.24
	Reform	Frank Hockly	2,591	45.76
Informal votes			21	0.37
Majority			480	8.48
Turnout			5,683	70.13
Registered electors			8,104

Notes

1. McRobie 1989, pp. 71–76.
2. McRobie 1989, pp. 75, 79.
3. McRobie 1989, p. 75.
4. "The General Election, 1914". National Library. 1915. p. 13. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
5. McRobie 1989, p. 74.
6. McRobie 1989, p. 78.
7. McRobie 1989, pp. 82f.
8. McRobie 1989, pp. 86f.
9. McRobie 1989, pp. 90f.
10. McRobie 1989, pp. 94f.
11. McRobie 1989, pp. 98f.
12. McRobie 1989, pp. 102, 106–107.
13. McRobie 1989, pp. 110f.
14. McRobie 1989, pp. 114f.
15. McRobie 1989, pp. 70, 74.
16. Wilson 1985, p. 229.
17. "Final Returns". Taranaki Herald . Vol. LV, no. 14012. 17 September 1909. p. 3. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
18. "The Rangitikei Seat". Otago Daily Times . No. 14624. 9 September 1909. p. 7. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
19. Foster 1966.
20. "Rangitikei Seat". The Evening Post . Vol. LXXVIII, no. 74. 24 September 1909. p. 3. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
21. "Political Notes". Manawatu Standard. Vol. XLI, no. 9632. 5 October 1911. p. 5. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
22. "Wellington Province". Poverty Bay Herald. Vol. XXXVIII, no. 12632. 8 December 1911. p. 5. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
23. "The General Election, 1911". National Library. 1912. p. 3. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
24. Wilson 1985, p. 235.
25. Wilson 1985, pp. 211, 235.
26. "The General Election". Auckland Star . Vol. LIII, no. 53. 4 March 1922. p. 6. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
27. "The Election Campaign". The Press . Vol. LVIII, no. 17607. 9 November 1922. p. 14. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
28. The General Election, 1931. Government Printer. 1932. p. 5. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
29. Wilson 1985, p. 211.
30. Wilson 1985, p. 209.
31. NZPD Vol. 301, pp. 2364–67
32. Cottrell 1974, pp. 24, 30.
33. McRobie 1989, pp. 94, 98–99.
34. Wilson 1985, p. 184.
35. Freer 2004, pp. 33, 58.
36. Taylor 1974, p. 222.
37. Logan 2008, p. 282.
38. "RETIREMENT OF MR KEARINS". Press. 29 July 1954. p. 12. Retrieved 28 November 2021– via Papers Past.
39. "PARLIAMENT SESSION ENDED: 12 MEMBERS RETIRING". Press. 2 October 1954. p. 8. Retrieved 28 November 2021– via Papers Past.
40. McRobie 1989, pp. 94, 98.
41. Wilson 1985, p. 207.
42. McRobie 1989, pp. 106, 110–111.
43. Wilson 1985, p. 273.
44. Norton 1988, p. 369.
45. "The General Election, 1949". National Library. 1950. pp. 1–5, 8. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
46. "The General Election, 1946". National Library. 1947. pp. 1–11, 14. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
47. "The General Election, 1943". National Library. 1944. p. 11. Retrieved 28 March 2014.
48. "The General Election, 1938". National Library. 1939. pp. 1–6. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
49. The General Election, 1935. Government Printer. 1936. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
50. The General Election, 1928. Government Printer. 1929. p. 3. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
51. The General Election, 1925. Government Printer. 1926. p. 2. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
52. The General Election, 1922. Government Printer. 1923. p. 2. Retrieved 28 August 2016.
53. The New Zealand Official Year-Book. Government Printer. 1920. Retrieved 2 August 2013.
54. "The Polling". Otago Daily Times . No. 17811. 18 December 1919. p. 6. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
55. "The General Election, 1911". National Library. 1912. pp. 3, 7. Retrieved 1 August 2013.

References

• Cottrell, S. P. (1974). Parliament and Conscience: 1950–1972 (MA). Christchurch: University of Canterbury.
• Foster, Bernard John (22 April 2009) [1966]. McLintock, A. H. (ed.). Second Ballot System (1908–13). Wellington: An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand . Retrieved 7 August 2013.
• Freer, Warren (2004). A Lifetime in Politics: the Memoirs of Warren Freer. Wellington: Victoria University Press.
• Logan, Mary (2008). Nordy, Arnold Nordmeyer: A Political Biography. Wellington: Steele Roberts.
• McRobie, Alan (1989). Electoral Atlas of New Zealand. Wellington: GP Books. ISBN   0-477-01384-8.
• Taylor, B. S. (1974). The Expulsion of John A. Lee and its Effects on the Development of the NZ Labour Party (MA). Christchurch: University of Canterbury.
• Wilson, Jim (1985) [First published in 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC   154283103.
• Norton, Clifford (1988). New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946–1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science. Wellington: Victoria University of Wellington. ISBN   0-475-11200-8.