1901 City of Christchurch by-election

New Zealand by-election April 2024 April 2022 The City of Christchurch by-election of 1901 was a by-election held on 18 July 1901 during the 14th New Zealand Parliament in the urban seat of the City of Christchurch. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of conservative politician Charles Lewis and won by George John Smith. Background Lewis was first elected in the 1896 City of Christchurch by-election. As a conservative, he won despite the electorate being mostly liberal supporters due to vote splitting by two candidates with liberal leanings.http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=TS18960108.2.11 The Star 8 January 1896 5457 The Star 1 16 April 2016http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=CHP18960214.2.31 The Press The Christchurch election 5 LIII 9340 14 February 1896 15 April 2016 Lewis was confirmed by the voters in the 1896 and 1899 general elections, but he found the parliamentary work demanding to his health. At the time, sessions regularly extended into the evening or the early morning, sometimes even all night. He missed the last week of the session in 1900 due to exhaustion. When he called a meeting in Christchurch in June 1901 that was poorly attended, he felt unsupported by the constituency and resigned later that week. Christchurch's main newspaper, The Press, argued that people were focussed on the upcoming royal visit instead.Mr Lewis Explains http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010617.2.12 16 April 2016 The Press LVIII 10993 17 June 1901 3 His resignation was announced in the newspapers on 12 June 1901.Resignation of Mr. C. Lewis, M.H.R. http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010612.2.2 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 10989 12 June 1901 4 The by-election was the first election held under the provisions of the Electoral Act Amendment Act, 1900.http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=CHP19010614.2.26 The Press An Anticipated Difficulty 9 LVIII 10991 14 June 1901 23 April 2016 The parliamentary session of 1901 opened on 1 July.Scholefield 1950 69 The prime minister, Richard Seddon, moved in the House of Representatives on 3 July that the speaker issue writs for the Christchurch and Patea by-elections.House of Representatives http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010704.2.46 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11008 4 July 1901 5 The Christchurch registrar of elections received the writ on 4 July, and that closed the electoral roll.The Bye-Election http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010705.2.32 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11009 5 July 1901 3 Candidates Arthur Hughes Turnbull The first person to confirm his candidacy was Arthur Hughes Turnbull. His father, Richard Turnbull, had represented the Timaru electorate from Timaru 1868 to 1890.123975 Arthur Hughes Turnbull 23 April 2016 Turnbull stood as an independent Liberal.The Bye-Election http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010709.2.39 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11012 9 July 1901 6 One of the people who nominated Turnbull was Thomas Gapes.The Bye-Election http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010712.2.23 25 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11015 12 July 1901 3 Charles Taylor Charles Taylor had stood in the 1899 general election as a Liberal–Labour candidate and came sixth of the eight candidates;The Bye-Election http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010614.2.25 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 10991 14 June 1901 3 https://atojs.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/atojs?a=d&cl=search&d=AJHR1900-I.2.3.2.54 The General Election, 1899 19 June 1900 Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives 2 1 November 2012 Wellington prior to that election campaign, he had been virtually unknown.The Bye-Election http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=TS19010704.2.10 23 April 2016 The Star 7141 4 July 1901 2 In June 1901, the Trades and Labour Council decided to ask its 5,000 members in Christchurch to choose between Charles Taylor, W. Newton, and G. Fisher by ballot.The Christchurch Seat http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=TS19010617.2.41 23 April 2016 The Star 7127 17 June 1901 3 It was reported on 21 June that Taylor had "decidedly" won the selection.The Bye-Election http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010621.2.44 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 10997 21 June 1901 7 George John Smith Tommy Taylor was regarded as almost certain to stand as a prohibitionist; he had previously represented the City of Christchurch electorate and was very popular. If Taylor decided not to stand, George John Smith would stand instead. A large meeting was held on 18 June where Smith announced that he would not stand, and Taylor was asked by unanimous resolution to become a candidate.The Bye-Election http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010619.2.68 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 10995 19 June 1901 9 Two days later, Taylor announced that he could not stand because of business commitments. Smith accepted to become a candidate at a meeting held on 27 June in the hall of the Trinity Church, with James Arthur Flesher as the chairman of his election committee.The Bye-Election http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=TS19010628.2.9.3 23 April 2016 The Star 7136 28 June 1901 1 Smith stood as an independent Liberal. William Hoban William Hoban announced his candidacy on 22 June by newspaper advertisement.Election Notices http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010622.2.67.6 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 10998 22 June 1901 12 He had previously run for election, and represented the interests of licensed victuallers. He withdrew again to avoid "vote splitting" on 9 July.Election Notices http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010709.2.3.5 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11012 9 July 1901 1 Campaign The first election meeting was held by Taylor on 3 July, who spoke at the Canterbury Hall under the chairmanship of the Mayor of Christchurch, Arthur Rhodes. Turnbull's public meetings commenced on 8 July at the Druids' Hall in Colombo Road in Sydenham. In total, Turnbull held eight public meetings.Election Notices http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010705.2.3.5 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11009 5 July 1901 1 Smith also commenced his series of public meetings on Monday, 8 July.Christchurch Electorate http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010706.2.67.6 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11010 6 July 1901 12 A total of 23 public meetings were held by the three candidates, as per the table below: Date Smith Taylor Turnbull Wed, 3 July Canterbury Hall Thu, 4 July Fri, 5 July Sat, 6 July Sun, 7 July Mon, 8 July Foresters' Hall, Vogel Street, RichmondDruids' Hall, Colombo Road, SydenhamState School, Waltham Tue, 9 July State School, WalthamPublic Library, Knightstown Wed, 10 July Choral Hall, CityForesters' Hall, Vogel Street, RichmondWomen's Political Association, Hobb's Building Thu, 11 July Methodist Schoolroom, Selwyn Street, AddingtonPublic Library, KnightstownTheatre Royal, Gloucester Street Fri, 12 July Public Library, KnightstownMerivale Schoolroom Sat, 13 July Cathedral Square Sun, 14 July Mon, 15 July Methodist Schoolroom, Selwyn Street, AddingtonForesters' Hall, Vogel Street, Richmond Tue, 16 July Mission Hall, SydenhamState School, WalthamMethodist Schoolroom, Selwyn Street, Addington Wed, 17 July Methodist Schoolroom, St Albans LaneCathedral SquareDruids' Hall, Colombo Road, Sydenham There was little political difference between Turnbull and Smith, as both were independent Liberals with fairly similar views. Their only real point of difference was that Smith was a prohibitionist (although much more moderate than Tommy Taylor), whilst Turnbull was in favour of temperance.http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=TS19010709.2.11 The Star 9 July 1901 7115 The Star 1 25 April 2016 Charles Taylor, on the other hand, was a staunch advocate for labour interests. Results The election was held on 18 July 1901. There were a total of fourteen polling booths throughout the electorate: nine in Christchurch, three in Sydenham, and two in St Albans.Christchurch Electorate http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010708.2.3.6 23 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11011 8 July 1901 1 When the resignation of Lewis was received, an election official purged the electoral roll that had been compiled for the 1899 general election by several thousand names, and invited people new to the electorate to enrol. With limited time available for enrolment, the final roll had 17,268 names, 4083 fewer than the 1899 electoral roll. Smith beat Charles Taylor and Arthur Hughes Turnbull.Election Notices http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=CHP19010712.2.3.5 22 April 2016 The Press LVIII 11015 12 July 1901 1 Notes References Guy Scholefield Scholefield Guy New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 3rd First published in 1913 1950 Govt. Printer Wellington Wilson James Oakley New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 4th First ed. published 1913 1985 V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer Wellington 154283103 Category:By-elections in New Zealand Category:1901 elections in New Zealand Category:Politics of Christchurch Category:1900s in Christchurch Category:July 1901 in Oceania