1954 New Zealand general election

none April 2024 April 2018 1954 New Zealand general election New Zealand 1954 parliamentary no 1951 New Zealand general election 1951 30th New Zealand Parliament 1957 New Zealand general election 1957 32nd New Zealand Parliament All 80 seats in the House of Representatives 41 seats were needed for a majority 1954 11 13 y elected members 1,096,877 (91.4%) 200x200px Sidney Holland 26 November 1940 New Zealand National Party Fendalton 50 seats, 54.0% 45 5 485,630 44.3% 9.7% 200x200px Walter Nash 17 January 1951 New Zealand Labour Party Hutt 30 seats, 45.8% 35 5 484,028 44.1% 1.7% 1954 New Zealand general election - Results.svg 400px Results of the election. Prime Minister Subsequent Prime Minister Sidney Holland Sidney Holland New Zealand National Party New Zealand National Party The 1954 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 31st term. It saw the governing National Party remain in office, but with a slightly reduced majority. It also saw the debut of the new Social Credit Party, which won more than eleven percent of the vote but failed to win a seat. Background The National Party had formed its first administration after the 1949 elections. It had then been re-elected by a large margin amid the industrial disputes of the 1951 election. The Prime Minister, Sidney Holland, was popular in many sectors of society for his strong line against striking dockworkers and coalminers, while Labour's leader, Walter Nash, had been criticised for his failure to take a firm stand on the issue. Labour was troubled by internal disputes, with Nash subjected to an unsuccessful leadership challenge only a few months before the election.Sinclair 1976 292-4 For the election, the National government adopted a "steady as she goes" approach, saying that the country was in good hands and did not need any major policy realignments. Nash tried to make the election about the issue of cost-of-living with most of Labour's campaign promises being financial policies. He frequently highlighted the fact that in 1949 National had promised to "make the pound go further" but five years on what cost £1 (20 shillings) now cost 28 shillings. Labour's campaign promises included raising the child allowance to 15 shillings a week, housing loans with only 3% interest and the introduction of a PAYE income taxation system.Sinclair 1976 294 After a slow start to his campaign, things improved for Nash towards the end of his campaign. This was evidenced by his audiences becoming more enthusiastic such as one meeting held at the Auckland Town Hall where a crowd of 10,000 impatiently telling the first speaker, trade union president Fintan Patrick Walsh, to sit down and a chant of "we want Walter" breaking out.Sinclair 1976 294-5 The Social Credit campaign meetings aroused far more public interest than those of the main parties. A common public perception was Labour and National were increasingly close to each other on policies compared to the substantial policy differences in the 1930s. In an attempt to counter the public enthusiasm to Social Credit, Labour promised mid-campaign to make the state the sole authority for the issue of credit and currency.Sinclair 1976 294 Contemporary commentary in The New Zealand Listener noted the unusually quiet tone of the 1954 campaign, observing that while the absence of controversy may have led some to worry about public apathy, the gravity of electing a government still carried democratic weight. The article suggested that the electorate's familiarity with the major parties’ policies, combined with an educated public and increased access to political debate through radio broadcasts, meant that voters could make informed decisions even without attending campaign meetings in person.Before the Election New Zealand Listener 12 November 1954 4 https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/new-zealand-listener/1954/11/12/4 11 July 2025 The election The date for the main 1954 elections was 13 November. 1,209,670 people were registered to vote, and turnout was 91.4%. The number of seats being contested was 80, a number which had been fixed since 1902. thumb|Full-page advertisement by the New Zealand National Party published in the New Zealand Listener, 12 November 1954, p.12 In what was described at the time as the most competitive election since 1935, the 1954 contest featured an unusually high number of candidates and the active presence of a third party in all but one seat. Fifteen electorates had no sitting member re-contesting due to retirements and boundary changes, while two others, Eden and Onslow, saw incumbent MPs standing against each other. Electoral boundary revisions were extensive, affecting nearly all electorates, and resulted in the abolition of six electorates (Arch Hill, Brooklyn, Mt. Victoria, Parnell, Piako, and Waimarino).Programme for November 13 New Zealand Listener 12 November 1954 28 https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/periodicals/new-zealand-listener/1954/11/12/28 11 July 2025 The following new (or reconstituted) electorates were introduced in 1954: Heretaunga, Manukau, Rotorua, Stratford, Waipa and Waitemata.Norton 1988 7–9 Two candidates, both called John Stewart, came second; in Auckland Central for National and in Eden for Labour.Norton 1988 193, 220 MPs retiring in 1954 Ten MPs retired at the election, see cartoon. https://natlib.govt.nz/records/22787418?search%5Bi%5D%5Bname_authority_id%5D=-286379&search%5Bpath%5D=items The First Eleven (retiring MPs) National Library of New Zealand Party Name Electorate Independent William Sheat Patea National William Bodkin Central Otago Wilfred Fortune Eden Andy Sutherland Hauraki Chales Bowden Karori Alfred Murdoch Marsden Edward Gordon Rangitīkei Clifton Webb Rodney Walter Broadfoot Waitomo Labour Robert McKeen Island Bay Bob Semple Miramar Charles Chapman Wellington Central Paddy Kearins also left parliament at the election. His electorate of Waimarino was abolished and he failed to gain selection to stand for Labour in the replacement electorate of Rotorua.Party Influence Alleged In Candidate's Selection The Evening Post 2 October 1954 Two Labour MPs had announced their intention to retire at the 1954 election (Harry Combs MP for Onslow and Arthur Osborne MP for Onehunga) but died before the end of the parliament.Mr. H. E. Combs, M.P., Dead The Evening Post 12 June 1954 13 Mr Osborne Dies After Long Illness The New Zealand Herald 16 November 1953 10 Results The 1954 election saw the governing National Party re-elected with a ten-seat margin, a drop from the twenty-seat margin it previously held. National won forty-five seats to the Labour Party's thirty-five. The popular vote was much closer, however, with the two parties separated by only 0.2% (1,602 votes). On preliminary results Labour was leading in 37 seats and was actually ahead of National in the popular vote by 0.33%.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19541115.2.59 Government Wins Election – Labour Gains Seven Seats The Press 15 November 1954 XC 27507 10 No seats were won by minor party candidates or by independents, but the new Social Credit Party managed to win 11.2% of the vote, and it can be argued that Social Credit saved the National Government by providing an alternative to Labour and so minimising the two-party swing.Gustafson 1986 66 Nash argued that Social Credit's impact on the election was being a spoiler, claiming Labour was denied victory because of this.Mr Nash Says Labour Will Continue Fight – A Statement Amended The New Zealand Herald 9 15 November 1954 center Election resultsPartyCandidatesTotal votesPercentageSeats wonchange New Zealand National PartyNational79485,63044.345 −5New Zealand Labour PartyLabour80484,02844.135 +5 Social Credit Party (New Zealand)Social Credit79122,57311.2 0 ±0 Communist Party of New ZealandCommunist81,1340.1 0 ±0 Independent politicianIndependents93,474 0.3 0 ±0Total2551,096,87780 Votes summary Popular vote #ddd 600px 410px National New Zealand National Party 44.27 Labour New Zealand Labour Party 44.13 Social Credit Social Credit Party (New Zealand) 11.17 Others #777777 0.43 Parliament seats #ddd 600px 410px National New Zealand National Party 56.25 Labour New Zealand Labour Party 43.75 The table below shows the results of the 1954 general election: Key New Zealand National Party New Zealand Labour Party Independent politician Social Credit Party (New Zealand) Electorate results for the 1954 New Zealand general electionNorton 1988 ? |- |colspan=8 style="background-color:#FFDEAD" | General electorates |- Ashburton Geoff Gerard New Zealand National Party 2,292 George Glassey New Zealand Labour Party Auckland Central Bill Anderton New Zealand Labour Party 4,093 John Weir Stewart New Zealand National Party Avon John Mathison New Zealand Labour Party 4,955 Arthur Norman Stone New Zealand National Party Awarua George Herron New Zealand National Party 3,172 J P Wyatt New Zealand Labour Party Bay of Plenty Bill Sullivan New Zealand National Party 3,062 Godfrey Santon New Zealand Labour Party Buller Jerry Skinner New Zealand Labour Party 3,348 Derisly Manwell Carson New Zealand National Party Central Otago William Bodkin New Zealand National Party Jack George New Zealand National Party 2,074 Peter John Scott New Zealand Labour Party Christchurch Central Robert Macfarlane New Zealand Labour Party 3,395 Oliver G. Moody New Zealand National Party Clutha James Roy New Zealand National Party 1,490 T A Rodgers New Zealand Labour Party Dunedin Central Phil Connolly New Zealand Labour Party 330 Marcus Anderson New Zealand National Party Dunedin North Ethel McMillan New Zealand Labour Party 2,791 Helen BlackNorton 1988 214 New Zealand National Party Eden Wilfred Fortune New Zealand National Party Duncan Rae New Zealand National Party 8 John Stewartnb John Stewart was first on election night, but lost when special votes were included New Zealand Labour Party Egmont Ernest Corbett New Zealand National Party 2,977 Roy EvansNorton 1988 222 New Zealand Labour Party Fendalton Sidney Holland New Zealand National Party 3,004 Roy Henry McDonald New Zealand Labour Party Franklin Jack Massey New Zealand National Party 4,587 Percival Peacock New Zealand Labour Party Gisborne Harry Dudfield New Zealand National Party Reginald Keeling New Zealand Labour Party 521 Harry Dudfield New Zealand National Party Grey Lynn Fred Hackett New Zealand Labour Party 4,807 Tom McGowan New Zealand National Party Hamilton Hilda Ross New Zealand National Party 1,430 Ben Waters New Zealand Labour Party Hastings Sydney Jones New Zealand National Party Ted Keating New Zealand Labour Party 252 Sydney Jones New Zealand National Party |- | Hauraki | style="background-color:New Zealand National Party;" | | style="text-align:center;" | Andy Sutherland | style="background-color:New Zealand National Party;" | | style="text-align:center;background-color:;" | Arthur Kinsella | style="text-align:right;" | 2,659 | style="background-color:New Zealand Labour Party;" | | style="text-align:center;" | Brevat William Dynes |- Hawkes Bay Cyril Harker New Zealand National Party 3,109 A Stafford New Zealand Labour Party Heretaunga Phil Holloway New Zealand Labour Party 5,058 Allan McCready New Zealand National Party Hobson Sidney Smith New Zealand National Party 2,584 Cecil William Elvidge Social Credit Party (New Zealand) Hurunui William Gillespie New Zealand National Party 2,395 Norman Kirk New Zealand Labour Party Hutt Walter Nash New Zealand Labour Party 3,681 Clevedon Costello New Zealand National Party Invercargill Ralph Hanan New Zealand National Party 943 William Denham New Zealand Labour Party Island Bay Robert McKeen New Zealand Labour Party Arnold Nordmeyer New Zealand Labour Party 3,824 John Maurice Whitta New Zealand National Party Karori Charles Bowden New Zealand National Party Jack Marshall New Zealand National Party 1,811 Jim Bateman New Zealand Labour Party Lyttelton Harry Lake New Zealand National Party 24 Tom McGuigannb Tom McGuigan was first on election night, but lost when special votes were included New Zealand Labour Party Manawatu Matthew Oram New Zealand National Party 2,228 Patrick Kelliher New Zealand Labour Party Manukau Leon Götz New Zealand National Party 3,072 Cyril Stamp New Zealand Labour Party Marlborough Tom Shand New Zealand National Party 1,635 George Allan Turner New Zealand Labour Party Marsden Alfred Murdoch New Zealand National Party Don McKay New Zealand National Party 872 Mervyn Allan Hosking nb National deselected the sitting MP (Alfred Murdoch) (q.v.) in favour of William Vallance; then Vallance had tax problems and was replaced by Don McKay. When Vallance ran as an independent candidate, the vote-splitting almost cost National the seat.Gustafson 1986 235 New Zealand Labour Party Miramar Bob Semple New Zealand Labour Party Bill Fox New Zealand Labour Party 1,527 Robert John McConnell New Zealand National Party Mornington Wally Hudson New Zealand Labour Party 3,886 Walter MacDougall New Zealand National Party Mt Albert Warren Freer New Zealand Labour Party 3,226 Robert Muldoon New Zealand National Party Napier Peter Tait New Zealand National Party Jim Edwards New Zealand Labour Party 720 Peter Tait New Zealand National Party Nelson Edgar Neale New Zealand National Party 717 Stan Whitehead New Zealand Labour Party New Plymouth Ernest Aderman New Zealand National Party 1,178 Clarence Robert Parker New Zealand Labour Party North Shore Dean Eyre New Zealand National Party 1,395 Arthur Faulkner New Zealand Labour Party Oamaru Thomas Hayman New Zealand National Party 1,358 J H Rapson New Zealand Labour Party Onehunga Hugh Watt New Zealand Labour Party 4,389 Alfred E. Allen New Zealand National Party Onslow Henry May New Zealand Labour Party 519 Wilfred Fortune New Zealand National Party Otahuhu Leon Götz New Zealand National Party James Deas New Zealand Labour Party 1,806 Leonard Bradley New Zealand National Party Otaki Jimmy Maher New Zealand National Party 963 Ernie Langford New Zealand Labour Party Pahiatua Keith Holyoake New Zealand National Party 3,519 Ronald Bell New Zealand Labour Party Palmerston North Blair Tennent New Zealand National Party Philip Skoglund New Zealand Labour Party 346 Blair Tennant New Zealand National Party Patea William Sheat Independent politician Roy Jack New Zealand National Party 662 Benjamin Winchcombe New Zealand Labour Party Petone Mick Moohan New Zealand Labour Party 4,211 Fanny Elizabeth Soward New Zealand National Party Ponsonby Ritchie Macdonald New Zealand Labour Party 3,948 Harold Barry New Zealand National Party Raglan Hallyburton Johnstone New Zealand National Party 857 James Harrison Wilson New Zealand Labour Party Rangitikei Edward Gordon New Zealand National Party Norman Shelton New Zealand National Party 2,679 Stephen Malcolm Roberton New Zealand Labour Party Remuera Ronald Algie New Zealand National Party 3,544 Bob Tizard New Zealand Labour Party Riccarton Angus McLagan New Zealand Labour Party 4,343 Balfour Grieve Dingwall New Zealand National Party Rodney Clifton Webb New Zealand National Party Jack Scott New Zealand National Party 3,270 Arthur Hellyn New Zealand Labour Party Roskill John Rae New Zealand National Party 1,652 Elizabeth Morris New Zealand Labour Party Rotorua Ray Boord New Zealand Labour Party 822 Percy Allen New Zealand National Party St Albans Jack Watts New Zealand National Party 608 Mick Connelly New Zealand Labour Party St Kilda Jim Barnes New Zealand National Party 114 Fred Jones New Zealand Labour Party Selwyn John McAlpine New Zealand National Party 2,521 Daniel Clinton New Zealand Labour Party Stratford Thomas Murray New Zealand National Party 2,966 Brian Edgar Richmond New Zealand Labour Party Sydenham Mabel Howard New Zealand Labour Party 5,560 Alma Schumacher New Zealand National Party Tamaki Eric Halstead New Zealand National Party 1,986 Pat Curran New Zealand Labour Party Tauranga George Walsh New Zealand National Party 3,448 Oliver Liddell New Zealand Labour Party Timaru Clyde Carr New Zealand Labour Party 1,423 Vic Wilson New Zealand National Party Waikato Geoffrey Sim New Zealand National Party 4,698 Albert Clifford Tucker New Zealand Labour Party Waimate (vacant)nb David Campbell Kidd, the National Party MP for Waimate, died less than two months before the election, leaving his seat vacant.Wilson 1985 210 Alfred Davey New Zealand National Party 1,438 Neville Pickering New Zealand Labour Party Waipa Stan Goosman New Zealand National Party 4,435 Harold Francis Gallagher New Zealand Labour Party Wairarapa Bert Cooksley New Zealand National Party 1,691 Bob Wilkie http://www.listener.co.nz/current-affairs/politics/interview-labour-deputy-grant-robertson/ Profile: Labour deputy Grant Robertson New Zealand Listener 3 March 2012 26 September 2014 Guyon Espiner Espiner Guyon New Zealand Labour Party Waitakere Rex Mason New Zealand Labour Party 3,424 Jim McAllister New Zealand National Party Waitemata Norman King New Zealand Labour Party 387 Hubert Morrison New Zealand National Party Waitomo Walter Broadfoot New Zealand National Party David Seath New Zealand National Party 1,480 Vic Haines New Zealand Labour Party Wallace Tom Macdonald New Zealand National Party 4,466 J W Cleary New Zealand Labour Party Wanganui Joe Cotterill New Zealand Labour Party 305 Jack Rumbold New Zealand National Party Wellington Central Charles Chapman New Zealand Labour Party Frank Kitts New Zealand Labour Party 627 Allan Highet New Zealand National Party Westland Jim Kent New Zealand Labour Party 3,605 Mark Wallace Independent politician |- |colspan=8 style="background-color:#FFDEAD" | Māori electorates |- Eastern Maori Tiaki Omana New Zealand Labour Party 3,094 Claude AnaruGustafson 1986 353 New Zealand National Party Northern Maori Tapihana Paikea New Zealand Labour Party 4,435 Tono Waetford New Zealand National Party Southern Maori Eruera Tirikatene New Zealand Labour Party 2,864 Turi Carroll New Zealand National Party Western Maori Iriaka Rātana New Zealand Labour Party 6,637 William Rakeipoho BennettGustafson 1986 355 New Zealand National Party |} Table footnotes nb Notes References Gustafson Barry Barry Gustafson The First 50 Years : A History of the New Zealand National Party 1986 Reed Methuen Auckland 0-474-00177-6 Norton Clifford New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946–1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science 1988 Victoria University of Wellington Wellington 0-475-11200-8 Sinclair Keith Keith Sinclair Walter Nash 1976 Oxford University Press Auckland 0-19-647949-5 Wilson Jim Jim Wilson (librarian) New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 4th First published in 1913 1985 V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer Wellington 154283103