- Nelson (New Zealand electorate)
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Area covered by the Nelson electorate since 1996
Nelson is a New Zealand Parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. From 1853 to 1860, the electorate was called Town of Nelson. From 1860 to 1881, it was City of Nelson. The electorate is the only one that has continuously existed since the 1st Parliament in 1853.
The current MP for Nelson is Nick Smith of the National Party.[1] He has held this position since 1996.
Nelson is based around the city of Nelson, with the dormitory town of Richmond and the smaller communities of Hope and Brightwater drafted in to bring the seat up to quota.
Contents
History
An electorate based on the Nelson has been contested at every election since the first Parliament in 1853. Two of the original 24 electorates from the 1st Parliament still exist (New Plymouth is the other one), but Nelson is the only original electorate that has existed continuously.[2]
The electorate was initially known as Town of Nelson. From 1866 to 1881, it was called City of Nelson. Since 1881, it has been known as simply Nelson.[3]
From 1853 to 1881, Nelson was a two member electorate.[3] James Mackay and William Travers were the first two representatives elected in 1853. Travers and William Cautley (MP for Waimea) both resigned on 26 May 1854. Travers subsequently contested the seat that Cautley had vacated, being elected in the 21 June 1854 Waimea by-election. Samuel Stephens, who succeeded Travers in Nelson, died before the end of the first term, but the seat remained vacant.
Alfred Domett retired from politics at the end of the 3rd Parliament. Edward Stafford resigned in 1868 during the term of the 4th Parliament. Nathaniel Edwards won the resulting by-election. Martin Lightband resigned after a year in Parliament in 1872 and was succeeded by David Luckie.
Nelson became a single member electorate in 1881. Henry Levestam, who was first elected in an 1881 by-election to replace Adams was confirmed by the voters at the next three general elections (1881, 1884 and 1887), but he died in office on 11 February 1889.[4]
The current boundaries were fixed in 1996 ahead of the change to Mixed Member Proportional voting; the decrease in South Island seats from 25 to 16 lead to the abolition of one western South Island seat; Tasman was split between West Coast and the then much smaller Nelson seat.
Labour has held a politically dominant position in Nelson since 1957, although the seat elected a National member of parliament (former Tasman MP Nick Smith) at every election since 1996. The gap between the two main parties contesting the list vote has narrowed - 43% to 36% in Labour's favour at the 2005 election versus a 45%-19% split three years earlier. Nelson is also a seat in which the Green Party performs better than the national average - nearly nine percent in 2002 and 7.7 percent in 2005.
Members of Parliament for Nelson
1853 to 1881
From 1853 to 1881, Nelson was a two-member electorate.
Election Winners 1853 election James Mackay (Independent) William Travers (Independent) 1854 by-election Samuel Stephens (Independent) 1855 election Alfred Domett (Independent) Edward Stafford (Independent) 1861 election 1866 election Oswald Curtis (Independent) 1868 by-election Nathaniel Edwards (Independent)[5] 1871 election Martin Lightband (Independent)[6] 1872 by-election David Mitchell Luckie (Independent)[7] 1875 election John Sharp (Independent)[8] 1879 by-election Acton Adams (Independent)[9] 1879 election Albert Pitt (Independent) 1881 by-election Henry Levestam (Independent) 1881 onwards
Since 1881, Nelson has been a single-member electorate.
Name Party Elected Left Office Reason Henry Levestam[10] Independent 1881, 1884, 1887 1889 died Joseph Harkness[11] Independent 1889 by-election, 1890 1893 retired John Graham 1893-1911 Independent 1893, 1896, 1899, 1902, 1905, 1908 1911 retired Harry Atmore Independent 1911 1914 defeated Thomas Field Reform 1914 1919 defeated Harry Atmore Independent 1919, 1922, 1925, 1928, 1931, 1935, 1938, 1943 20 August 1946 died Edgar Neale National 1946, 1949, 1951, 1954 1957 retired Stanley Whitehead Labour 1957, 1960, 1963, 1966, 1969, 1972, 1975 9 January 1976 died Mel Courtney1 Labour 1976 by-election, 1978 1981 defeated Philip Woollaston Labour 1981, 1984, 1987 1990 retired John Blincoe Labour 1990, 1993 1996 defeated in enlargened seat Nick Smith National 1996, 1999, 2002, 2005, 2008 incumbent 1 Courtney contested the 1981 election as an independent.
List MPs from Nelson
Members of Parliament elected from party lists in elections where that person also unsuccessfully contested the Nelson electorate. Unless otherwise stated, all MPs terms began and ended at general elections.
Name Party Elected Left Office Mike Ward Green 2002 2005 Election results
2008 election
General Election 2008: Nelson[12] Notes: Green background denotes the winner of the electorate vote.
Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list.
Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member.
A
or 
denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.Party Candidate Votes % ±% Party Votes % ±% National Nick Smith20,471 57.13 +1.41 15,378 42.46 +5.45 Labour Maryan Street 12,000 33.49 +5.84 13,689 37.79 -5.17 Green Diana Mellor 2,605 7.27 -4.45 3,417 9.43 +1.69 Kiwi Robin Westley 312 0.87 256 0.71 ACT Paul Hufflett 306 0.85 +0.45 900 2.48 +1.43 United Future Kelvin Deal 138 0.39 -1.17 387 1.07 -2.43 NZ First 1,104 3.05 -1.28 Progressive 282 0.78 -0.35 Bill and Ben 209 0.58 Māori 184 0.51 +0.27 Family Party 160 0.44 Legalise Cannabis 144 0.40 +0.12 Alliance 42 0.12 +0.03 Democrats 24 0.07 ±0.00 Workers Party 13 0.04 Libertarianz 12 0.03 +0.01 Pacific 11 0.03 RONZ 5 0.01 ±0.00 RAM 3 0.01 Informal votes 241 115 Total Valid votes 35,832 36,220 Turnout 36,548 81.77 -1.00 National hold Majority 8,471 23.64 -4.43 2005 election
General Election 2005: Nelson[13][14] Notes: Green background denotes the winner of the electorate vote.
Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list.
Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member.
A or denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.Party Candidate Votes % ±% Party Votes % ±% National Nick Smith20,299 55.72 +8.45 13,619 37.01 +17.68 Labour Jen McCutcheon 10,073 27.65 -6.94 15,809 42.96 -1.96 Green Mike Ward 4,269 11.72 -0.51 2,848 7.74 -1.18 United Future Dennis Wells 568 1.56 -0.72 1,289 3.50 -3.18 Destiny Jason Thomson 383 1.05 361 0.98 Progressive Jacqueline McAlpine 252 0.69 +0.06 417 1.13 -0.18 Christian Heritage Nick Barber 209 0.57 -1.33 141 0.38 -1.48 Māori Anne Fitzsimon 165 0.45 89 0.24 ACT Mike Heine 144 0.40 388 1.05 -2.94 Direct Democracy Rex Newey 67 0.18 50 0.14 NZ First 1,593 4.33 -2.04 Legalise Cannabis 104 0.28 -0.29 Alliance 33 0.09 -1.09 Democrats 24 0.07 One NZ 11 0.03 -0.06 Libertarianz 9 0.02 Family Rights 7 0.02 99 MP 6 0.02 RONZ 4 0.01 ±0.00 Informal votes 260 113 Total Valid votes 36,429 36,802 Turnout 37,052 82.77 +3.19 National hold Majority 10,226 28.07 +15.39 2002 election
General Election 2002: Nelson[14][15] Notes: Green background denotes the winner of the electorate vote.
Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list.
Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member.
A or denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.Party Candidate Votes % ±% Party Votes % ±% National Nick Smith15,779 47.27 +2.49 6,517 19.33 -7.70 Labour John Kennedy 11,547 34.59 +2.83 15,149 44.92 +4.30 Green Mike Ward 4,084 12.23 +2.10 3,008 8.92 +0.78 United Future Dennis Wells 762 2.28 2,254 6.68 +5.68a Christian Heritage Nick Barber 635 1.90 -1.20 628 1.86 -2.80 Alliance Mary O'Connor 364 1.09 -6.13 398 1.18 -7.74 Progressive Adrian Bayly 211 0.63 441 1.31 NZ First 2,147 6.37 +4.27 ORNZ 1,602 4.75 ACT 1,346 3.99 -1.52 Legalise Cannabis 193 0.57 -0.13 One NZ 30 0.09 -0.01 NMP 5 0.01 -0.08 RONZ 4 0.01 Mana Māori 3 0.01 ±0.00 Informal votes 286 115 Total Valid votes 33,382 33,721 Turnout 33,923 79.58 National hold Majority 4,232 12.68 -0.35 -
- a United Future swing is compared to the 1999 results of United NZ and Future NZ, who merged in 2000.
1999 election
General Election 1999: Nelson[14][16][17] Notes: Green background denotes the winner of the electorate vote.
Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list.
Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member.
A or denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.Party Candidate Votes % ±% Party Votes % ±% National Nick Smith15,542 44.78 9,419 27.03 Labour Simon Fraser 11,021 31.76 14,154 40.62 Green Mike Ward 3,516 10.13 2,835 8.14 Alliance Mary O'Connor 2,505 7.22 3,108 8.92 Christian Heritage Nick Barber 1,077 3.10 1,624 4.66 ACT Philip Gully 461 1.33 1,920 5.51 NZ First Trevor Squires 296 0.85 732 2.10 McGillicuddy Serious Tim Owens 223 0.64 95 0.27 NMP Suzanne Johnston 64 0.18 32 0.09 Legalise Cannabis 278 0.80 Future NZ 216 0.62 United NZ 131 0.38 Libertarianz 114 0.33 South Island 67 0.19 Animals First 51 0.15 One NZ 34 0.10 Natural Law 14 0.04 Mana Māori 5 0.01 People's Choice 5 0.01 Freedom Movement 4 0.01 Mauri Pacific 4 0.01 Republican 3 0.01 Informal votes 485 345 Total Valid votes 34,705 34,845 National hold Majority 4,521 13.03 Notes
- ^ New Zealand Parliament - Nick Smith MP
- ^ Wilson 1985.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 161.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 120.
- ^ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1906). "Present And Past Members Of Parliament". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Nelson, Marlborough & Westland Provincial Districts. Christchurch. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc05Cycl-t1-body1-d1-d1-d3.html#name-431286-mention. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
- ^ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1906). "Present And Past Members Of Parliament". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Nelson, Marlborough & Westland Provincial Districts. Christchurch. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc05Cycl-t1-body1-d1-d1-d3.html#name-431301-mention. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
- ^ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1906). "Present And Past Members Of Parliament". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Nelson, Marlborough & Westland Provincial Districts. Christchurch. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc05Cycl-t1-body1-d1-d1-d3.html#name-414212-mention. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
- ^ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1906). "Present And Past Members Of Parliament". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Nelson, Marlborough & Westland Provincial Districts. Christchurch. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc05Cycl-t1-body1-d1-d1-d3.html#name-431304-mention. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
- ^ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1906). "Present And Past Members Of Parliament". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Nelson, Marlborough & Westland Provincial Districts. Christchurch. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc05Cycl-t1-body1-d1-d1-d3.html#name-421173-mention. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
- ^ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1906). "Present And Past Members Of Parliament". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Nelson, Marlborough & Westland Provincial Districts. Christchurch. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc05Cycl-t1-body1-d1-d1-d3.html#name-431305-mention. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
- ^ Cyclopedia Company Limited (1906). "Present And Past Members Of Parliament". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Nelson, Marlborough & Westland Provincial Districts. Christchurch. http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-Cyc05Cycl-t1-body1-d1-d1-d3.html#name-417048-mention. Retrieved 4 July 2010.
- ^ 2008 election results
- ^ "Official Count Results – Nelson". Elections New Zealand. 2005. http://electionresults.org.nz/electionresults_2005/electorate-30.html. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
- ^ a b c "Electorate Profile Nelson". New Zealand Parliamentary Library. October 2005. http://www.parliament.nz/NR/rdonlyres/12F36DD0-6FE0-4642-8C0B-B0C0785D9106/152/Nelson1.pdf. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
- ^ "Official Count Results – Nelson". Elections New Zealand. 2002. http://electionresults.org.nz/electionresults_2002/electorate-30.html. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
- ^ "Votes for Registered Parties by Electorate". Elections New Zealand. 1999. http://electionresults.org.nz/electionresults_1999/e9/html/e9_partIV.html. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
- ^ "Elected Candidate Votes by Electorate". Elections New Zealand. 1999. http://electionresults.org.nz/electionresults_1999/e9/html/e9_partIX_2.html. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
References
- Scholefield, Guy Hardy (1950) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand parliamentary record, 1840-1949. Wellington: Govt. Printer.
- Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand parliamentary record, 1840-1984 (4 ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.
External links
- Electorate Profile Parliamentary Library
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