1905 New Zealand general election

Elections on 6 December 1905

1905 general election

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| <- 1902 | 6 (general) & 20 December (Māori) 1905 | 1908 ->

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<- outgoing members

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All 80 seats in the New Zealand House of Representatives
41 seats were needed for a majority
Turnout| 83.3%
|  | First party  | Second party  | Third party

|
|
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|  |  |
Leader  | Richard Seddon | William Massey | George Laurenson
Party  | Liberal | Conservative | New Liberal
Leader since  | 28 April 1893 | 11 September 1903  | 1905
Leader's seat  | Westland | Franklin | Lyttelton
Last election  | 47 seats  | 19 seats  | not yet founded
Seats before  | 42 seats  | 21 seats  | 4
Seats won  | 58  | 16  | 2
Seat change  |  16  |  5  |  2
Popular vote  | 219,144  | 122,572  | 15,721
Percentage  | 53.1  | 29.7  | 3.8
Swing  |  1.3  |  9.1  |  3.8

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Results of the election.

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| Premier before election

Richard Seddon
Liberal

| Subsequent Premier

Richard Seddon
Liberal

|

The 1905 New Zealand general election was held on Wednesday, 6 December in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 20 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 16th session of the New Zealand Parliament. A total number of 412,702 voters turned out, with 396,657 (83.25% of the electoral roll) voting in the European electorates.[1][2][3]

## Changes to the electoral law

[edit]

The 1903 City Single Electorates Act declared that at the dissolution of the 15th Parliament, the four multi-member electorates would be abolished and replaced each with three single-member electorates.[4] It was also the year absentee voting was introduced for all electors unable to be in their own electorate on election day. The first Chief Electoral Officer was appointed.

Accordingly, the multi-member urban electorates of City of Auckland, City of Christchurch, City of Dunedin and City of Wellington were abolished and replaced with the following single-member seats:

* Auckland Central
* Auckland East
* Auckland West
* Christchurch East
* Christchurch North
* Christchurch South
* Wellington Central
* Wellington East
* Wellington North
* Dunedin Central
* Dunedin North
* Dunedin South

Nine of these twelve electorates had existed before. Wellington Central, Wellington North, and Dunedin North were established for the first time.[5]

## Historic context

[edit]

In 1905 a progressive faction within the Liberal Party started to form in opposition to Liberal leader Richard Seddon's policies. They announced that they would stand in the election as the New Liberal Party, however an accusation against Seddon's son, when disproven saw most of the dissidents return to the Liberal Party, and of the four New Liberals (George Laurenson, Francis Fisher, Harry Bedford and Tommy Taylor) that stood in the election only Laurenson and Fisher were returned.

The freshly created Independent Political Labour League also contested the election as a breakaway faction from the Liberals. It was the first of many steps of a gradual move by urban labourers shifting allegiance to an independent working-class political party. Previously, most workers had supported the Liberal Party, which since the 1890s had attempted to gain Trade Union support by appointing union representatives to the party's governing body. The IPLL did not perform well, gaining only 3,478 votes nationwide with no candidates elected.[6]

The Rev Frank Isitt was the Prohibition candidate for several South Island electorates, and came second in two.

## Results

[edit]

A cartoon depicting the infamous "Voucher incident" showing New Liberals distancing themselves from Fisher.

### Party totals

[edit]

The following table gives party strengths and vote distribution.[7]

Election results
Party  | Candidates  | Total votes  | Percentage  | Seats won  | Change
| Liberal | 94 | 219,144 | 53.1 | 58 | +11
| Conservative | 63  | 122,572  | 29.7  | 16  | -3
| New Liberal | 7  | 15,721  | 3.8  | 2  | +2
| Ind. Labour League | 9  | 3,478  | 0.8  | 0  | ±0
| Independent | 63  | 51,785  | 12.5  | 4  | -10

### Votes summary

[edit]

| Popular Vote

|  |
Liberal |

| 53.1%
Conservative |

| 29.7%
New Liberal |

| 3.8%
Ind. Labour League |

| 0.8%
Independents |

| 12.5%

| Parliament seats

|  |
Liberal |

| 72.5%
Conservative |

| 20.0%
New Liberal |

| 2.5%
Independents |

| 5.0%

## Electorate results

[edit]

The following are the results of the 1905 general election:

Key

Liberal Conservative New Liberal Liberal–Labour Independent Liberal Independent

Electorate results for the 1905 New Zealand general election[8][9] Electorate  | Incumbent  | Winner  | Majority  | Runner up

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General electorates
Ashburton |  | John McLachlan | 244  |  | John Studholme
Auckland Central | New electorate  |  | Alfred Kidd | 939  |  | Lemuel Bagnall
Auckland East | New electorate  |  | Frederick Baume | 871  |  | Harry Bamford
Auckland West | New electorate  |  | Charles Poole | 340  |  | James Parr
Avon |  | William Tanner | 725  |  | John Russell Brunt
Awarua |  | Joseph Ward | 2,848  |  | Henry Woodnorth
Bay of Islands |  | Robert Houston | 470  |  | John Charles Johnson
Bay of Plenty |  | William Herries | 211  |  | Joseph Foster
Bruce |  | James Allen | 435  |  | William Darcy Mason
Buller |  | James Colvin | 2,798  |  | Frank Isitt
Caversham |  | Thomas Sidey | 1,760  |  | William Earnshaw
Chalmers |  | Edmund Allen | 1,437  |  | William Pryor
Christchurch East | New electorate  |  | Thomas Davey | 565  |  | Henry Featherston Toogood
Christchurch North | New electorate  |  | Charles Gray | 1,084  |  | Tommy Taylor
Christchurch South | New electorate  |  | Harry Ell | 2,511  |  | Charles Henry Winny
Clutha |  | James Thomson |  | Alexander Malcolm | 272  |  | Daniel Stewart
Courtenay |  | Charles Lewis | 232  |  | Thomas Jones McBride
Dunedin Central | New electorate  |  | John A. Millar | 1,919  |  | Alexander Samuel Adam
Dunedin North | New electorate  |  | Alfred Richard Barclay | 514  |  | Harry Bedford
Dunedin South | New electorate  |  | James Arnold | 780  |  | William Downie Stewart
Eden |  | John Bollard | 2,760  |  | Robert French
Egmont |  | William Thomas Jennings | 651  |  | Charles Leech
Ellesmere |  | Heaton Rhodes | 283  |  | George Rennie
Franklin |  | William Massey | 935  |  | William Wilson McCardle
Geraldine |  | Frederick Flatman | 1,233  |  | William Jeffries
Grey |  | Arthur Guinness | 377  |  | Joseph Petrie
Grey Lynn |  | George Fowlds | 230  |  | John Farrell
Hawera |  | Charles E. Major | 449  |  | Felix McGuire
Hawke's Bay |  | William Russell |  | Alfred Dillon | 1,043  |  | William Russell
Hurunui |  | Andrew Rutherford | 1,186  |  | Obed Frederick Clothier
Hutt |  | Thomas Wilford | 1,912  |  | George Yerex
Invercargill |  | Josiah Hanan | 1,721  |  | Irvin Willis Raymond
Kaiapoi |  | David Buddo | 45  |  | Richard Moore
Kaipara |  | Alfred Harding |  | John Stallworthy | 9  |  | Alfred Harding
Lyttelton |  | George Laurenson | 1,108  |  | William Radcliffe
Manawatu |  | Job Vile |  | John Stevens | 359  |  | Job Vile
Manukau |  | Matthew Kirkbride | 663  |  | Ralph Duncan Stewart
Marsden |  | Francis Mander | 348  |  | Robert Thompson
Masterton |  | Alexander Hogg | 859  |  | James Christopher Cooper
Mataura |  | Robert McNab | 435  |  | Thomas MacGibbon
Motueka |  | Roderick McKenzie | 2,733  |  | Frank Isitt
Mount Ida |  | Alexander Herdman |  | John MacPherson | 394  |  | Alexander Herdman
Napier |  | Alfred Fraser | 1,469  |  | Montague W. P. Lascelles[10][11]
Nelson |  | John Graham | 29  |  | Harry Atmore
Newtown |  | William Henry Peter Barber | 1,213  |  | Thomas William Hislop
Oamaru |  | Thomas Young Duncan | 2,009  |  | James Mitchell
Ohinemuri |  | Edward Moss |  | Hugh Poland | 351  |  | Edward Moss
Oroua |  | Frank Lethbridge | 986  |  | Owen Carlin Pleasants
Otaki |  | William Hughes Field | 1,394  |  | Byron Paul Brown
Pahiatua |  | Bill Hawkins |  | Robert Beatson Ross | 206  |  | Bill Hawkins
Palmerston |  | William Wood | 480  |  | Frederick Pirani
Parnell |  | Frank Lawry | 122  |  | Murdoch McLean
Patea |  | Walter Symes | 143  |  | John Hine
Rangitikei |  | Arthur Remington | 1,710  |  | Joe Reginald Sommerville
Riccarton |  | George Witty | 1,240  |  | Thomas Caverhill
Selwyn |  | Charles Hardy | 322  |  | Joseph Ivess
Taieri |  | Donald Reid | 535  |  | Alexander Marshall
Taranaki |  | Edward Smith | 236  |  | Henry Okey
Thames |  | James McGowan | 1,229  |  | Malcolm Fleming
Timaru |  | William Hall-Jones | 1,063  |  | Frank Rolleston
Tuapeka |  | James Bennet | 977  |  | Robert Gilkison
Waiapu |  | James Carroll | 1,798  |  | Lissant Clayton
Waikato |  | Frederic Lang |  | Henry Greenslade | 78  |  | Frederic Lang
Waikouaiti |  | Thomas Mackenzie | 702  |  | Edward Henry Clark
Waipawa |  | Charles Hall | 1,254  |  | George Hunter
Wairarapa |  | Walter Clarke Buchanan |  | J. T. Marryat Hornsby | 531  |  | Walter Clarke Buchanan
Wairau |  | Charles H. Mills | 977  |  | John Duncan
Waitaki |  | William Steward | 1,643  |  | George Dash
Waitemata |  | Ewen Alison | 971  |  | Cecil Clinkard
Wakatipu |  | William Fraser | 423  |  | Michael Gilfedder
Wallace |  | John Charles Thomson | 461  |  | Dugald Macpherson
Wanganui |  | Archibald Willis |  | James Thomas Hogan | 924  |  | Archibald Willis
Wellington Central | New electorate  |  | Francis Fisher | 445  |  | Patrick O'Regan
Wellington East | New electorate  |  | John Aitken | 19  |  | William McLean
Wellington North | New electorate  |  | Charles Hayward Izard | 660  |  | John Duthie
Westland |  | Richard Seddon | 3,180  |  | Harry Cowin
Māori electorates
Eastern Maori |  | Wi Pere |  | Āpirana Ngata | 757  |  | Wi Pere
Northern Maori |  | Hone Heke | 627  |  | Ru Reweti
Southern Maori |  | Tame Parata | 160  |  | Hopere Uru
Western Maori |  | Henare Kaihau | 1,688  |  | Tureiti Te Heuheu Tukino V

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ "New Zealand Elections 1905–1943". NZES. Retrieved 13 August 2011.[permanent dead link‍]
2. ^ "General elections 1853–2005 – dates & turnout". Elections New Zealand. Archived from the original on 14 November 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2011.
3. ^ "Results of the Polls". Ashburton Guardian. 7 December 1905. p. 2. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
4. ^ McRobie 1989, p. 67.
5. ^ Wilson 1985, pp. 262, 276.
6. ^ Paul 1946, p. 176.
7. ^ Wilson 1985, pp. 287–289.
8. ^ "The General Election, 1905". National Library. 1906. pp. 1–6. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
9. ^ "The Nominations". Vol. XXXVIII, no. 284\. Marlborough Express. 29 November 1905. p. 3. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
10. ^ "Personal Matters". The Evening Post. Vol. LXX, no. 61\. 9 September 1905. p. 5. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
11. ^ "Deaths". The Evening Post. Vol. CXXVIII, no. 72\. 22 September 1939. p. 1. Retrieved 10 October 2015.

## References

[edit]

* McRobie, Alan (1989). Electoral Atlas of New Zealand. Wellington: GP Books. ISBN 0-477-01384-8.
* Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First published in 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.
* Paul, J.T. (1946). Humanism in Politics. Wellington: NZ Working Printing & Publishing.

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