Hawera (New Zealand electorate)

Hawera was a parliamentary electorate in the South Taranaki District of New Zealand from 1896 to 1908. It was represented by two Members of Parliament over the four parliamentary terms of its existence.

Population centres

In the 1896 electoral redistribution, rapid population growth in the North Island required the transfer of three seats from the South Island to the north. Four electorates that previously existed were re-established, and three electorates were established for the first time, including Hawera.^[1] The New Plymouth electorate was abolished, the Egmont electorate shifted north, and the Patea electorate shifted east. This made room for the Taranaki and Hawera electorates.^[2] Settlements in the original Hawera electorate were the towns of Hawera, Manaia, and Eltham.^[3]

In the 1902 electoral redistribution, Eltham was lost to the Patea electorate, but Opunake was gained from the Taranaki electorate.^[4] In the 1907 electoral redistribution, the Hawera electorate was abolished, and its area was distributed to the Patea and Egmont electorates.^[5]

History

Felix McGuire was the electorate's first representative. As an independent conservative, he had previously represented the Egmont electorate since a 1891 by-election after the resignation of Harry Atkinson.^[6] In the 1902 election, McGuire was defeated by Charles E. Major of the Liberal Party.^[7] McGuire and Major once again contested the Hawera electorate in 1905, and Major remained successful.^[8]

The Hawera electorate was abolished at the 1908 election.^[9] Major stood in the Patea electorate, but was defeated by the conservative politician George Pearce.^[10]

Members of Parliament

The Hawera electorate was represented by two Members of Parliament:^[9]

Key

  Independent     Liberal  

Election	Winner
1896 election		Felix McGuire
1899 election
1902 election		Charles Major
1905 election
(Electorate abolished 1908; see Patea and Egmont)

Election resutls

1905 election

General election, 1905: Hawera[11]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Charles E. Major	2,206	42.55
	Opposition	Felix McGuire	1,757	33.89
	Opposition	Benjamin Robbins[nb 1]	1,222	23.57
Majority			449	8.66
Informal votes			61	1.16
Turnout			5,246	84.41
Registered electors			6,215

Table footnotes:

1. Most sources list Robbins simply as 'Opposition', but some make reference to 'Independent Labour'

1899 election

General election, 1899: Hawera[12][13]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Opposition	Felix McGuire	1,740	42.83	+7.89
	Liberal	Charles E. Major	1,685	41.47	+10.29
	Independent Liberal	David Lyon Astbury	638	15.70
Majority			55	1.35	+0.29
Turnout			4,063	78.26	-4.16
Registered electors			5,192

1896 election

General election, 1896: Hawera[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Opposition	Felix McGuire	1,182	34.94
	Opposition	Benjamin Robbins	1,146	33.88
	Liberal	Charles E. Major	1,055	31.19
Majority			36	1.06
Turnout			3,383
Registered electors			4,105

Notes

1. McRobie 1989, p. 63.
2. McRobie 1989, pp. 58, 62.
3. McRobie 1989, p. 62.
4. McRobie 1989, pp. 66f.
5. McRobie 1989, pp. 66–71.
6. Wilson 1985, p. 215.
7. Wilson 1985, p. 218.
8. "The General Election, 1905". National Library. 1906. p. 2. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
9. Wilson 1985, p. 264.
10. Wilson 1985, pp. 218, 226.
11. The General Election, 1905. National Library. 1906. p. 2. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
12. "The General Election, 1899". Wellington: Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives. 19 June 1900. p. 2. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
13. "Electoral District of Hawera". Hawera & Normanby Star. XXXVII (5061). 12 December 1899. p. 3. Retrieved 13 February 2014.
14. "Electoral District of Hawera". Hawera & Normanby Star. XXXIII (3418). 9 December 1896. p. 3. Retrieved 9 January 2014.

References

• 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.