1953 Auckland City mayoral election

New Zealand mayoral election November 2017 November 2017 1953 Auckland City mayoral election New Zealand Coat of arms of Auckland.svg Presidential no 1950 Auckland City mayoral election 1950 1956 Auckland City mayoral election 1956 31 October 1953 39,561 120px John Luxford Independent politician 20,201 51.06 115px John Allum Independent politician 18,633 47.09 Mayor John Allum John Luxford The 1953 Auckland City mayoral election was part of the New Zealand local elections held that same year. In 1953, elections were held for the Mayor of Auckland plus other local government positions including twenty-one city councillors. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post electoral method. Background Long serving incumbent mayor John Allum was successfully challenged by former magistrate John Luxford.Mr Luxford To Be City's Next Mayor The New Zealand Herald 23 November 1953 6 Allum was the first mayor in the 20th century who had stood for re-election unsuccessfully. Luxford was endorsed by the new United Independents electoral ticket who gained the balance of power between the Labour Party and Citizens & Ratepayers, costing the latter the majority they had held since 1938.Edgar 2012 The Labour Party initially intended to stand a candidate and it was seen that MP for Arch Hill and former councillor John Stewart would stand.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19530415.2.130 Mayoralty of Auckland - Candidature of Mr J. S. Stewart, M.P. The Press 15 April 1953 LXXXIX 27015 11 Stewart was selected as Labour's nominee but later withdrew his candidacy prompting the party to re-open nominations.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19530529.2.19 Auckland Local Body Polls - Labour to Contest All Seats The Press 29 May 1953 LXXXIX 27052 3 Labour selected a replacement candidate, Richard Newell Stephen Joseph Wrathall, to replace Stewart. Wrathall, who was Labour's candidate for North Shore at the 1951, was vice-president of the Auckland Labour Representation Committee and a candidate for the city council in 1947, 1950 and a 1952 by-election. He was an engineering clerk and both an executive member of the Auckland Trades Council and Clerical Workers' Union.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19530714.2.69 Personal Items The Press 14 July 1953 LXXXIX 27091 8 Just over a month before the election, Wrathall was removed as a candidate after he was suspended as a member of the party. The party subsequently did not select a replacement mayoral candidate.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19531008.2.137 Auckland City Mayoralty - Labour Suspends Candidate - No Substitute to be Offered The Press 8 October 1953 LXXXIX 27165 13 A major talking point in the lead up to the election was the potential of a clash with the 1953 Royal Tour.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19520918.2.103 Move to Postpone Next Municipal Elections The Evening Post 18 September 1952 27097 10 There were proposals to postpone local elections until early 1954 over fears of reduced turnout due to a conflicted schedule. The proposals were considered by the Minister of Internal Affairs William Bodkin, who ultimately decided against it.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/EP19530128.2.34 Local Elections Date Fixed The Evening Post 28 January 1953 27208 8 Mayoralty results 1953 Auckland mayoral electionElectoral The New Zealand Herald 16 November 1953 16 Independent politician John Luxford 20,201 51.06 Independent politician John Allum 18,633 47.09 -2.60 727 1.83 +1.43 1,568 3.96 39,561 Councillor results 1953 Auckland local election Citizens & Ratepayers Fred Ambler 15,972 42.61 -6.91 Citizens & Ratepayers Barbara Roche 15,329 40.89 11.46 United Independents Dove-Myer Robinson 15,175 40.48 New Zealand Labour Party Mary Dreaver 14,744 39.33 New Zealand Labour Party Bill Butler 14,682 39.16 -1.19 Citizens & Ratepayers Andrew Percy Postlewaite 14,403 38.42 United Independents Bruce Barnett 14,270 38.07 New Zealand Labour Party Agnes Dodd 13,735 36.64 +0.74 Citizens & Ratepayers Keith Buttle 13,524 36.08 -5.39 Citizens & Ratepayers John Whittaker 12,805 34.16 -2.75 United Independents Eric Armishaw 12,710 33.90 Citizens & Ratepayers Tom Bloodworth 12,557 33.50 Citizens & Ratepayers Reg Savory 12,553 33.48 New Zealand Labour Party Pat Curran 12,291 32.79 Citizens & Ratepayers Charles Bailey 12,091 32.25 United Independents Ken Cumberland 12,027 32.08 New Zealand Labour Party Alex Dreaver 11,696 31.20 New Zealand Labour Party George Forsyth 11,685 31.17 United Independents Vern Dyson 11,661 31.11 Citizens & Ratepayers Howard Hunter 11,459 30.57 -7.83 New Zealand Labour Party James Neil Bradley 11,431 30.49 Citizens & Ratepayers Edna Mackay 11,321 30.20 New Zealand Labour Party Ronald Akersten 11,103 29.62 New Zealand Labour Party Paul Richardson 11,096 29.60 -4.95 Citizens & Ratepayers John Upton 10,976 29.28 United Independents Vernon Brown 10,832 28.89 New Zealand Labour Party John Albert Mason 10,807 28.83 United Independents Maxwell Francis Constable 10,804 28.82 New Zealand Labour Party Alexander Grant 10,545 28.13 New Zealand Labour Party Edith Williams 10,452 27.88 New Zealand Labour Party Norman Finch 10,380 27.69 United Independents Mary Jackson 10,364 27.64 New Zealand Labour Party Cyril Keeling 10,237 27.31 New Zealand Labour Party Frederick Johnston 10,236 27.30 Citizens & Ratepayers Howard Moncrieff Bagnall 10,181 27.16 New Zealand Labour Party John Henry Weaver 10,170 27.13 -5.80 Citizens & Ratepayers Geoffrey Richard Keenan 10,165 27.11 Citizens & Ratepayers Robert Clive Haszard 10,138 27.04 Citizens & Ratepayers Harold Barry 10,091 26.92 -9.53 United Independents Catherine King 10,012 26.71 New Zealand Labour Party John Arthur Roebuck 10,012 26.71 Citizens & Ratepayers Bob Beechy 9,930 26.49 -9.02 United Independents Aubrey Tronson 9,868 26.32 -8.52 New Zealand Labour Party Walter Ernest Watson 9,810 26.17 New Zealand Labour Party William Thomas Elsdon 9,672 25.80 United Independents Trenthsm Charles Webster 9,485 25.30 Citizens & Ratepayers James Stewart Matthews 9,457 25.23 New Zealand Labour Party Arthur William Punchard 9,410 25.10 -4.46 United Independents Robert Dunsmuir 9,344 24.92 United Independents Thomas James Sprott 9,187 24.50 Citizens & Ratepayers Ralph Howard Exton 9,127 24.34 Independent politician Geoffrey Myers 8,954 23.88 Citizens & Ratepayers Gavin Lishman 8,905 23.75 United Independents Alfred Edward Knight 8,720 23.26 Citizens & Ratepayers Ian Norman Watkin 8,701 23.21 United Independents Gideon Rodger 8,442 22.52 New Zealand Labour Party Norman King 8,384 22.36 -12.92 United Independents William Murray Wilson 8,285 22.10 United Independents George Edward Wilding 8,037 21.44 United Independents Stanley Edward Burke 7,893 21.05 United Independents Annabel Kathleen Etherington 7,581 20.22 United Independents Scott Walton 7,420 19.79 United Independents Murray Lennan 7,248 19.33 Independent politician Mary Wright 6,327 16.87 -22.23 Independent politician Caroline Margaret Bennett 5,065 13.51 Independent politician Richard Armstrong 3,855 10.28 -3.32 Independent politician James MacLean 2,599 6.93 Independent politician George Mullenger 2,312 6.16 -6.49 Communist Party of New Zealand Alexander Drennan 1,975 5.26 -1.58 Independent politician Colin Campbell Biernacki 1,883 5.02 Independent politician Amy Milburn 1,874 4.99 -3.44 Communist Party of New Zealand Bill Andersen 1,817 4.84 Communist Party of New Zealand Rita Smith 1,644 4.38 -2.23 Communist Party of New Zealand Donald McEwan 1,612 4.30 -2.56 Communist Party of New Zealand August Smith 1,050 2.80 Communist Party of New Zealand Alec Rait 846 2.25 -1.09 Notes References John Edgar Urban Legend: Sir Dove-Meyer Robinson Hodder Moa 2012 autocollapse Category:Mayoral elections in Auckland Category:1953 elections in New Zealand Category:Politics of the Auckland Region Category:1950s in Auckland Category:November 1953 in Oceania