1914 New Zealand general election

The New Zealand general election of 1914 was held on 10 December to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 19th session of the New Zealand Parliament. The Maori vote was held on 11 December. A total number of 616,043 voters were registered, of which 84.7% voters turned out to vote.[1]

10 & 11 December 1914
All 80 seats in the New Zealand House of Representatives 41 seats were needed for a majority
Turnout	84.7%
First party Second party   Leader William Massey Joseph Ward Party Reform Liberal Leader since 11 February 1909 11 September 1913 Leader's seat Franklin Awarua Last election 38 seats, 33.4% 36 seats, 34.2% Seats before 41 32 Seats won 40 34 Seat change 1 2 Popular vote 243,122 222,299 Percentage 47.1% 43.1% Swing 13.7% 8.9%   Third party Fourth party   Leader Alfred Hindmarsh James McCombs Party United Labour Social Democrat Leader since 7 April 1912 Unclear Leader's seat Wellington South Lyttelton Last election Not yet founded Not yet founded Seats before 2 3 Seats won 3 2 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 22,672 22,500 Percentage 4.2% 4.2% Swing 4.2% 4.2%
Prime Minister before election William Massey Reform Prime Minister-designate William Massey Reform

The election saw William Massey's Reform Government maintain power.

The second-ballot voting system had been repealed in 1913, and first-past-the-post voting reinstated for the 1914 election.[1]

Soldiers serving overseas in the NZEF were given a vote by the Expeditionary Forces Voting Act, 1914. They voted for a party (Liberal, Labour or Reform) and their votes were allocated to a candidate for their electorate by a representative of their party; which sometimes required the representative to choose between rival "Liberal" or "Labour" candidates.[2]

Summary of results

Party totals

Election results
Party		Candidates	Total votes	Percentage	Seats won
	Reform Party	84	243,025	45.47	40
	Liberal Party	77	227,706	42.61	34
	United Labour	10	22,672	4.24	3
	Social Democrat	11	22,500	4.21	2
	Independents	12	18,554	3.47	1
Total valid votes			534,457		80
Informal votes			5,618	1.04
Registered voters			616,043
Total candidates		193

• Auckland West, Hawke's Bay, Taumarunui, Wairarapa, Waitaki and Wellington Central were won by the Liberals from Reform
• Chalmers, Dunedin West, Motueka, and Northern Maori were won by Reform from the Liberals
• Nelson was won by Reform from an independent.
• Otaki was won by Reform from the Social Democrats.
• Dunedin North was won by United Labour from Reform
• Four electorates replaced their incumbent MP with another from the same party: Christchurch East and Temuka (Liberal), Eden and Wellington Suburbs and Country (Reform).

Votes summary

Popular Vote Reform   46.90% Liberal   43.10% United Labour   4.24% Social Democrat   4.21% Independents   11.40%

Parliament seats Reform   50.00% Liberal   42.50% United Labour   3.75% Social Democrat   2.50% Independents   1.25%

Results

The following are the results of the 1914 general election:

Key

  Liberal     Reform     United Labour     Social Democrat     Independent Labour     Independent  

Electorate results for the 1914 New Zealand general election[3]

Electorate	Incumbent		Winner		Majority	Runner up
General electorates
Ashburton		William Nosworthy			157		William Maslin
Auckland Central		Albert Glover			2,302		Michael Joseph Savage
Auckland East		Arthur Myers			2,507		Arthur Holmes
Auckland West		James Bradney		Charles Poole	1,411		James Bradney
Awarua		Joseph Ward			1,226		John Hamilton
Avon		George Russell			1,073		Dan Sullivan
Bay of Islands		Vernon Reed			108		Peter Buck
Bay of Plenty		William MacDonald			965		Kenneth Williams
Bruce		James Allen			693		Charles Smith
Buller		James Colvin			2,195		George Powell
Chalmers		Edward Clark		James Dickson	686		William Mason
Christchurch East		Thomas Davey		Henry Thacker	1,890		Hiram Hunter
Christchurch North		Leonard Isitt			1,217		Henry Toogood[4]
Christchurch South		Harry Ell			2,333		Gains Whiting
Clutha		Alexander Malcolm			1,009		John Jenkinson
Dunedin Central		Charles Statham			12		Jim Munro
Dunedin North		George Thomson		Andrew Walker	322		George Thomson
Dunedin South		Thomas Sidey			2,697		Thomas Dalton
Dunedin West		John A. Millar		William Downie Stewart	345		John Johnson
Eden		John Bollard		James Parr	2,456		William Tuck
Egmont		Charles Wilkinson			894		David Astbury
Ellesmere		Heaton Rhodes			273		James Free
Franklin		William Massey			2,928		Arthur Glass
Gisborne		James Carroll			1,249		Harry de Lautour
Grey		Paddy Webb			980		Henry Michel
Grey Lynn		John Payne			89		Murdoch McLean
Hawke's Bay		Hugh Campbell		Robert McNab	40		Hugh Campbell
Hurunui		George Forbes			1,486		William Banks
Hutt		Thomas Wilford			943		Albert Samuel
Invercargill		Josiah Hanan			1,590		John Lillicrap
Kaiapoi		David Buddo			1,181		David Jones
Kaipara		Gordon Coates			1,118		Richard Hoe
Lyttelton		James McCombs			1,598		Malcolm Miller
Manukau		Frederic Lang			1,224		John McLarin
Marsden		Francis Mander			940		Edmund Purdie
Masterton		George Sykes			193		Alexander Hogg
Mataura		George Anderson			174		William Mehaffey
Motueka		Roderick McKenzie		Richard Hudson	602		Roderick McKenzie
Napier		Vigor Brown			2,215		George William Venables[5]
Nelson		Harry Atmore		Thomas Field	90		Harry Atmore
Oamaru		Ernest Lee			338		John MacPherson
Ohinemuri		Hugh Poland			100		Joseph Clark
Oroua		David Guthrie			1,119		John Morrison
Otago Central		Robert Scott			999		William Bodkin
Otaki		John Robertson		William Field	640		John Robertson
Pahiatua		James Escott			683		John Mathews
Palmerston		David Buick			1,109		Jim Thorn
Parnell		James Dickson			1,172		Jeremiah Sullivan
Patea		George Pearce			118		William Morrison
Raglan		Richard Bollard			1,448		William Thompson
Rangitikei		Edward Newman			903		Robert Hornblow
Riccarton		George Witty			1,215		Bertram Bunn
Selwyn		William Dickie			1,227		George Sheat
Stratford		John Hine			637		William Hawkins
Taranaki		Henry Okey			201		Daniel Hughes
Taumarunui		Charles Wilson		William Jennings	205		Charles Wilson
Tauranga		William Herries			1,992		Ralph Stewart
Temuka		Thomas Buxton		Charles Talbot	407		Charles Kerr
Thames		Thomas Rhodes			515		Edmund Taylor
Timaru		James Craigie			1,110		Francis Smith
Waikato		Alexander Young			2,193		Alexander Scholes
Waimarino		Robert Smith			1,995		Hugh Speed
Waipawa		George Hunter			138		Albert Jull
Wairarapa		Walther Buchanan		J. T. Marryat Hornsby	60		Walter Buchanan
Wairau		Richard McCallum			369		John Duncan
Waitaki		Francis Smith		John Anstey	156		Norton Francis
Waitemata		Alexander Harris			1,013		Henry Cromwell Tewsley[6]
Wanganui		Bill Veitch			852		Frederick Pirani
Wakatipu		William Fraser			897		Joseph Stephens[7]
Wallace		John Thomson			881		Alexander Rodger
Wellington Central		Francis Fisher		Robert Fletcher	2,329		Francis Fisher
Wellington East		Alfred Newman			48		David McLaren
Wellington North		Alexander Herdman			2,655		William Turnbull
Wellington South		Alfred Hindmarsh			1,215		John Luke
Wellington Suburbs and Country		William Bell		Robert Wright	1,002		Frank Moore
Westland		Tom Seddon			826		Arthur Paape
Māori electorates
Eastern Maori		Sir Āpirana Ngata			2,825		Hetekia Pere
Northern Maori		Te Rangi Hīroa		Taurekareka Henare	176		Hemi te Paa
Southern Maori		Taare Parata			238		Teone Matapura Erihana
Western Maori		Māui Pōmare		Māui Pōmare	2,107		Hema te Ao

References

1. "General elections 1853–2005 - dates & turnout". Elections New Zealand. Archived from the original on 14 November 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
2. Barry Gustafson (1980). Labour’s Path to Political Independence. Auckland University Press. pp. 87–88.
3. Hislop, J. (1915). The General Election, 1914. National Library. pp. 1–33. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
4. "Henry Featherston Toogood (1879–1962)". Engineering New Zealand. Retrieved 1 November 2019.
5. "General Election". The Press. L (15116). 4 November 1914. p. 7. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
6. "Mr. H.C. Tewsley". Observer. XXXV (14). 12 December 1914. p. 15. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
7. "Labour's Candidates". Maoriland Worker. 12 (299). 22 November 1922. p. 12. Retrieved 26 January 2014.

See also

• Politics of New Zealand
• Elections in New Zealand