1977 Porirua mayoral election

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| <- 1974 | 8 October 1977 | 1980 ->

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Turnout| 10,875 (62.14%)
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Candidate  | Whitford Brown | Helen Smith | Alastair Maclean
Party  | Independent | Values | Labour
Popular vote  | 4,526  | 3,208  | 2,226
Percentage  | 41.61  | 29.49  | 20.46

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| Mayor before election

Whitford Brown

| Elected mayor

Whitford Brown

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The 1977 Porirua mayoral election was part of the New Zealand local elections held that same year. The elections were held for the role of Mayor of Porirua plus other local government positions including fifteen city councillors, also elected triennially. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post electoral method.

## Background

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The incumbent Mayor, Whitford Brown, sought re-election for a sixth term. In 1975 Brown had been caught and convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol. He spent time afterward, including during the election campaign, in treatment for alcoholism at Hanmer Springs. Four councillors challenged him including two official party candidates from Labour and the Values Party. Brown had been an active Labour member in the past and was endorsed by Labour in all previous elections. Two other former Labour ticket councillors (Ted Taylor and Rex Willing) also challenged Brown.[1] For standing as an independent against the official Labour ticket, Willing was later expelled from the party.[2]

## Mayoral results

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1977 Porirua mayoral election[3] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

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| Independent | Whitford Brown | 4,526  | 41.61  | −29.49
| Values | Helen Smith | 3,208  | 29.49  |
| Labour | Alastair Maclean  | 2,226  | 20.46  |
| Independent | Ted Taylor  | 510  | 4.68  | −22.40
| Independent | Rex Willing | 405  | 3.72  |
Majority  | 1,318  | 12.11  | −31.90
Turnout | 10,875  | 62.14  |

## Councillor results

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1977 Porirua City Council election  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

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Porirua Ward (12 vacancies)[4]

| Labour | George Moke  | 5,046  | 61.40  | +2.19
| Labour | John Burke | 4,713  | 53.33  | −9.80
| Values | Helen Smith | 4,632  | 52.59  | −14.80
| Labour | Margaret Brown  | 4,500  | 51.37  |
| Labour | Pamela Ann Jackson  | 4,174  | 48.38  |
| Independent | Maxine Arnold  | 4,076  | 46.48  | −9.49
| Labour | Ivan Hardgrave  | 4,019  | 46.95  | +2.36
| Labour | David Isaia  | 4,019  | 46.95  | +3.50
| Labour | Terry O'Brien  | 3,809  | 45.02  | +1.34
| Labour | Tom Janes  | 3,791  | 44.85  |
| Labour | Eric McKenzie  | 3,741  | 44.40  |
| Independent | Hec Stuart  | 3,552  | 42.66  | −11.05
| Labour | Phil O'Connell  | 3,476  | 41.96  | +6.26
| Labour | James Clark  | 3,444  | 41.66  |
| Independent | Peter Church  | 2,943  | 37.06  | −11.97
| Labour | Gavin Seamark  | 2,860  | 36.29  |
| Independent | Rex Willing | 2,822  | 35.94  | −5.37
| Independent | Alf Mexted  | 2,389  | 31.96  | −11.17
| Independent | Aileen Dette  | 2,364  | 31.73  | −19.11
| Independent | John Barnett  | 2,344  | 31.55  |
| Independent | Lester Dobson  | 2,076  | 29.08  |
| Socialist Action | Ken Stanton  | 1,292  | 21.88  |

Taupo Ward (2 vacancies)[5]

| Independent | Jan Bennett  | unopposed |  |
| Independent | Colin Beyer | unopposed |  |

Pukerua Bay Ward (1 vacancy)[6]

| Independent | Ferdinand Dreyer  | 344  | 51.42  |
| Values | William Dyas  | 325  | 48.58  |

## References

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1. ^ Cleland, Marian (10 October 1977). "Mayor With A Problem Thanks Porirua Voters". The Evening Post. p. 12.
2. ^ Hayward, Margaret (1981). Diary of the Kirk Years. Auckland: Reed Publishing. p. 319\. ISBN 0589013505.
3. ^ "City of Porirua - Election of Mayor". The Evening Post. 15 October 1977. p. 30.
4. ^ "City of Porirua - Election of Twelve Councillors—Porirua Ward". The Evening Post. 15 October 1977. p. 30.
5. ^ "City of Porirua - Election of (2) Councillors For The Taupo Ward". The Evening Post. 15 October 1977. p. 30.
6. ^ "City of Porirua - Election of One Councillor—Pukeura Bay Ward". The Evening Post. 6 September 1977. p. 28.