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The 1853 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's first term. It was the first national election ever held in New Zealand, although Parliament did not yet have full authority to govern the colony, which was part of the British Empire at that time. Elections for the first provincial councils and their Superintendents were held at the same time.[1]
Background
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b0/W._B._Rhodes%2C_Wellington_Country_1853.jpg/170px-W._B._Rhodes%2C_Wellington_Country_1853.jpg)
The New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, established a bicameral New Zealand Parliament, with the lower house (the House of Representatives) being elected by popular vote. Votes were to be cast under a simple FPP system, and the secret ballot had not yet been introduced.
To qualify as a voter, one needed to be male, to be a British subject, to be at least 21 years old, to own a certain value of land, and to not be serving a criminal sentence. One of the candidates elected (on 27 August, for Christchurch Country) was a landowner, but at 20 years and 7 months was not yet 21: he was James Stuart-Wortley.
At the time of the 1853 elections, there were no political parties in New Zealand. As such, all candidates were independents.
The election
[edit]In the 1853 elections, election day was different in each seat. The first seat to be elected was Bay of Islands on 14 July, and the final election day was on 1 October.[2] Hugh Carleton (Bay of Islands) was the first MP ever elected in New Zealand (though he was elected unopposed), so he liked to be called the Father of the House.[3]
There were 5,849 people registered to vote.[2]
The total number of seats was 37.[2]
The number of electoral districts was 24. Some districts elected multiple MPs (they elected using block voting). Wellington and Auckland had three members each. Some parts of the colony were not part of any district, and did not have representation in Parliament.[4]
Results
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Brett 2016, p. 61.
- ^ a b c "General elections 1853-2005 - dates & turnout". Elections New Zealand. Archived from the original on 14 November 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2010.
- ^ McLintock, A. H., ed. (23 April 2009) [First published in 1966]. "Carleton, Hugh Francis". An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand. Ministry for Culture and Heritage / Te Manatū Taonga. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
- ^ Wilson 1985.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 127.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 95.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 129.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 130.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 126.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 133.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 99.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 141.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 145.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 138.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 102.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 121.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 118.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 120.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 106.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 132.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 123.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 144.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 108.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 107.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 94.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 109.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 143.
- ^ a b Scholefield 1950, p. 100.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 134.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 147.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 105.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 112.
- ^ Scholefield 1950, p. 135.
Bibliography
[edit]- Brett, André (June 2016). Acknowledge No Frontier – The Creation and Demise of New Zealand's Provinces, 1853–76. Dunedin: Otago University Press. ISBN 978-1-927322-36-9.
- Scholefield, Guy (1950) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 (3rd ed.). Wellington: Govt. Printer.
- Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.