1904 Cape Colony parliamentary election

Elections for the House of Assembly were held in Cape Colony in 1904. The election was a victory for the Progressives under Leander Starr Jameson, who had first achieved prominence for his role in the ill-fated Jameson Raid.[1]

1904 Cape Colony parliamentary election
January & February 1904
All 95 seats in the Assembly
48 seats needed for a majority
  Majority party Minority party
 
Leader Leander Starr Jameson James Tennant Molteno
Party Progressive South African Party
Leader's seat Grahamstown Somerset East
Seats won 50 42
Seat change 6
Green - Cape Progressive Party
Blue - South African Party
Grey - Independent
Prime Minister before election

Gordon Sprigg
Independent Progressive

 Elected Prime Minister

Leander Starr Jameson
Progressive

The incumbent Prime Minister Gordon Sprigg had been elected in 1898 as a Progressive, however the Progressives had been wracked by internal divisions. Whilst most of the party had been able to reconcile under Jameson, Sprigg and his Commissioner of Public Works Arthur Douglass, had been forced to contest the election as Independent Progressives. Both of them would lose their seats to Progressive candidates. The election also saw former Prime Minister William Schreiner lose his seat.[2][3] Sprigg would resign as Prime Minister some days after the last results were announced, and was succeeded by Jameson. Following the election James Tennant Molteno would be replaced by John X. Merriman as leader of the South African Party.

Thirteen constituencies were uncontested.[4] Following the election of 95 members, Act 4 was passed, which gave a further twelve seats to the House. These were elected through by-elections in the same year.[4]

Results

Below is a table summarising the results of the election.[5]

Party Seats Seats change Votes* % % Change
Progressive 50 6 42,009
South African Party 42 41,792
Independent-South African Party 2
Independent (SAP leaning) 1
Other (Labour etc) 0
Total 95 100
  • Note: Votes are approximations. Nearly all constituencies were multi-member constituencies, where voters were able to cast varying numbers of votes, making strict voting numbers immediately unclear.

Statistics
Constituency Seats Registered voters Votes available Votes cast Turnout
Albany22,0364,0723,09175.91
Albert21,8243,6482,32463.71
Aliwal North21,4522,9042,27178.20
Barkly West21,9533,9062,24657.50
Beaufort West22,1244,2482,69663.47
Caledon22,4784,9563,46970.00
Cape Town717,131119,91743,10835.95
Cathcart11,1711,17181469.51
Clanwilliam21,7133,426Unopposed
Colesberg22,1844,3683,06270.10
Cradock22,0254,050Unopposed
East London34,69714,0915,03635.74
Fort Beaufort21,6593,3182,51675.83
George44,00216,00810,59366.17
Graaff-Reinet22,4174,8342,72756.41
Graham's Town21,8373,6741,83449.92
Griqualand East21,9893,978Unopposed
Humansdorp11,3951,395Unopposed
Jansenville21,9373,874Unopposed
Kimberley46,40425,61612,68349.51
King William's Town32,8008,4003,44941.06
Malmesbury22,4434,886Unopposed
Mafeking1758758Unopposed
Middelburg11,4841,484Unopposed
Namaqualand22,0164,0323,13377.70
Oudtshoorn33,0609,1804,31346.98
Paarl32,8648,5926,89080.19
Piquetberg21,5823,1642,33273.70
Prieska11,0291,02973671.53
Port Elizabeth510,95154,75522,04940.27
Queen's Town33,61710,8515,51450.82
Richmond21,9223,8441,97751.43
Riversdale22,2094,418Unopposed
Simon's Town11,6341,6341,10467.56
Somerset East22,5775,1544,30083.43
Stellenbosch22,1954,3903,55981.07
Swellendam22,6955,3903,60566.88
Tembuland22,7895,5784,07973.13
Uitenhage33,0809,2405,71261.82
Victoria East27791,5581,02966.05
Victoria West22,3344,668Unopposed
Vryburg29441,888Unopposed
Wodehouse22,0014,0022,66366.54
Woodstock36,44219,3268,17642.31
Worcester33,63010,890Unopposed
Wynberg34,91414,7424,07927.67
Total107135,177437,307187,16947.80
Source: Statistical register of the colony of the Cape of Good Hope
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References
  1. John Charrington Smith, Alan (1980). General Elections in the Cape Colony: 1898-1908 (PDF). University of Cape Town.
  2. Wills, Walter H. (2006). The Anglo-African Who's Who and Biographical Sketchbook, 1907. Jeppestown Press. p. 325.
  3. Switzer, Les (1993). Power and Resistance in an African Society: The Ciskei Xhosa and the Making of South Africa. University of Wisconsin Press. p. 159.
  4. Statistical register of the colony of the Cape of Good Hope, piv
  5. John Charrington Smith, Alan (1980). General Elections in the Cape Colony: 1898-1908 (PDF). University of Cape Town. pp. 48, 49, 112.
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