1985 Timaru by-election

New Zealand by-election April 2024 December 2020 1985 Timaru by-election New Zealand 1985 presidential no 1984 New Zealand general election 1984 general 1987 New Zealand general election 1987 general 1985 06 15 y 22,027 (89.99%) 100px Maurice McTigue New Zealand National Party 9,371 42.67 100px Jan Walker New Zealand Labour Party 7,879 35.88 100px Bill Greenslade New Zealand Party 2,998 13.65 Member Sir Basil Arthur New Zealand Labour Party Maurice McTigue New Zealand National Party The Timaru by-election of 1985 was a by-election for the electorate of Timaru during the term of the 40th New Zealand Parliament. It was triggered by the death of Sir Basil Arthur (who had held the seat since 1962) on 1 May 1985. Sir Basil was Speaker of the House, and had inherited the rank of baronet from his father in 1949. The by-election was held on 15 June 1985 and was won by Maurice McTigue of the National Party with a majority of 1,492 votes. Candidates Labour Ten candidates were nominated for the Labour Party nomination:https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850514.2.11 Ten seek Labour Party ticket The Press 14 May 1985 1 Doug Low, a trade unionist who was the chairman of the Timaru Trades Council Peter Melhopt, a Timaru animal health officer with the Ministry of Agriculture David Polson, an Oamaru lawyer who was Labour's 1984 candidate for Otago Ian Quigley, a brewery manager and former MP for Otago Central Lewis Rivers, a psychologist with the Department of Education Ian Simmonds, a Timaru school teacher Geoff Stone, a horticulturalist from Hinds who was Labour's 1984 candidate for Ashburton Brian Tomlinson, Labour's 1984 candidate for Rangiora Jan Walker, a Rotorua City Councillor and lawyer for the Maori Affairs Department Bill Woods, Labour's candidate for Selwyn in 1978 and 1981 The selection meeting of around 220 party members was held. The selection committee of Helen Clark MP, Fred Anderson (party former executive), Tony Timms (general secretary), Alan Aldridge (electorate chairman), Roly Anderson (electorate vice-chairman), and Francis Griffin (electorate executive) deliberated for over four hours. They selected Walker as the candidate. She was the daughter of former Timaru City councillor and lawyer, Gordon Walker, and was chairman of the Labour Party's women's council as well as secretary of the Labour's Bay of Plenty Regional Council.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850517.2.15 Timaru by-election Labour’s candidate woman solicitor The Press 17 May 1985 2 National At least four men were nominated were nominated for the National Party candidacy. They were:https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850507.2.50 Labour plans to woo women voters The Press 7 May 1985 4 James Andrews, of Rangiora Maurice McTigue, a Temuka farmer and National's 1984 Timaru candidate Peter Miller, a Hamilton insurance company manager Peter Paterson, the director of National's Otago-Southland division McTigue was chosen via a ballot a selection meeting by party members.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850513.2.3 Geoff Mein Surgeon and farmer candidates for Timaru The Press 13 May 1985 1 New Zealand Party The New Zealand Party had four candidates vying for selections. Dr Bill Greenslade, Timaru surgeon McGregor Simpson, a Geraldine food processor Graham Ellery, a Geraldine freezing worker Denise Ownsworth, a Timaru sales manager Greenslade was selected by party members at a selection meeting. Social Credit Bruce Beetham, the leader of the Social Credit Party who had lost his seat of Rangitikei, was offered to stand in the seat. Beetham did not rule out standing, but inferred it unlikely and would do so only if Social Credit's previous candidate in the seat was unwilling to stand again.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850503.2.14 Mr Beetham asked to stand for Timaru The Press 3 May 1985 1 Lynley Simmons, a district commissioner of apprenticeships at the Department of Labour, was selected for the by-election. She had been Social Credit's candidate for Timaru in 1981 and 1984.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850508.2.29 Candidate for Socred The Press 8 May 1985 3 Others The Values Party selected Jamie Luck, a schoolteacher, as their candidate. He was a founding member of the party and was its spokesman on international affairs.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850516.2.13 Values chooses teacher The Press 16 May 1985 1 Alan Falloon, a geologist and former Labour Party member, stood for what he called a new Labour Party whose aim was to "create a type of trade union structure which truly represents the interests of the individual." Previously he had unsuccessfully sought Labour candidacy for Papanui and Christchurch Central. He was a distant relation to John Falloon, a National MP.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850524.2.32 New party contests seat The Press 24 May 1985 3 Campaign David Lange recalled a meeting during the by-election campaign when Labour general secretary Tony Timms manhandled a noisy heckler out of the building. He said that the Labour candidate Jan Walker was a good lawyer (and was later a Family Court judge), but that the Labour Party organisation (i.e. head office) insisted on the selection of a candidate who "did not live in Timaru and her opinions, and even her appearance, were at odds with the conservative character of the electorate"; although Jim Anderton predictably (and publicly) blamed the defeat on "the government's abandonment of traditional Labour policy".David Lange David Lange 2005 Viking 0-670-04556-X My Life New Zealand Party founder Bob Jones (who had already achieved his primary goal of ending the Muldoon government) was disappointed by his party's performance in the by-election came to the decision to put the party into recess. The by-election was the last time the Social Credit Party name was used before the party renamed itself as the Democratic Party later in the year.Calderwood David 2010 Not a Fair Go: A History and Analysis of Social Credit's Struggle for Success in New Zealand's Electoral System 123 University of Waikato Polling Two polls were conducted by The Timaru Herald.https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/CHP19850613.2.16 Poll has Labour closing the gap The Press 13 June 1985 2 PollDateThese are the survey dates of the poll, or if the survey dates are not stated, the date the poll was released. MauriceMcTigue JanWalker BillGreenslade LynleySimmons The Timaru Herald 30 May 1985 39.8 19.3 10.8 6.3 The Timaru Herald 13 June 1985 31.9 14.8 10.8 6.8 nb Results The following table gives the election results: References 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 Timaru 1985 Timaru Category:Politics of the Canterbury Region Category:June 1985 in Oceania