Hutt was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate. It was one of the original electorates in 1853 and existed during two periods until 1978. It was represented by 13 Members of Parliament.
The Representation Act 1900 had increased the membership of the House of Representatives from general electorates 70 to 76, and this was implemented through the 1902 electoral redistribution. In 1902, changes to the country quota affected the three-member electorates in the four main centres. The tolerance between electorates was increased to ±1,250 so that the Representation Commissions (since 1896, there had been separate commissions for the North and South Islands) could take greater account of communities of interest. These changes proved very disruptive to existing boundaries, and six electorates were established for the first time, and two electorates that previously existed were re-established, including Hutt.[1]
The main population centre in the electorate was the city of Lower Hutt in the Hutt Valley.
From 1871 onwards, the electorate was a single-member constituency. Fitzherbert contested the general election on 29 December 1875 against Hutchison and obtained 178 votes, with Hutchison receiving 38.[7] He retained the Hutt electorate until his resignation in 1879, so that he could appointed to the Legislative Council. H. Jackson won the resulting by-election against T. Mason,[8] but Mason was successful against Jackson at the 1879 general election a few months later.[9]
In 1902 the seat was recreated and was won by the Liberal leader Thomas Wilford. His party allegiance changed to the United Party, which took over from the Liberal Party by 1928. He resigned in 1929, and the ensuing by-election was won by Walter Nash. Nash became Minister of Finance and Prime Minister, who died in 1968. The seat was then held by Trevor Young, also for Labour.
McRobie, Alan (1989). Electoral Atlas of New Zealand. Wellington: GP Books. ISBN0-477-01384-8.
Norton, Clifford (1988). New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946-1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science. Wellington: Victoria University of Wellington. ISBN0-475-11200-8.
Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First published in 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC154283103.