The Westland Boroughs by-election 1868 was a by-election held in the Westland Boroughs electorate during the 4th New Zealand Parliament, on 3 April 1868.
The by-election was caused by the resignation of incumbent MP William Moorhouse and was won by William Henry Harrison. On nomination day (1 April) Harrison and William Shaw were nominated.[1] The Westland Boroughs electorate was made up of the boroughs of Greymouth and Hokitika.[2] Harrison was a resident of Greymouth and was the editor of the Grey River Argus.[3] Shaw was the current Mayor of Hokitika, and proprietor of the West Coast Times.[4] After a show of hands in favour of Shaw (eight votes to four), Harrison demanded a poll.[1] William Harrison was subsequently elected two days later.[5]
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | William Henry Harrison | 98 | 54.7 | ||
| Independent | William Shaw | 81 | 45.3 | ||
| Majority | 17 | 9.5 | |||
| Turnout | 179 | ||||
The polling was notable in that each candidate overwhelmingly dominated in their own borough, with Shaw taking 90% of the vote in Hokitika and Harrison all but one of the Greymouth votes.[6]
| Hokitika | Greymouth | |
| Shaw | 80 | 1 |
| Harrison | 9 | 89 |
References
edit- ^ a b "Election for the Westland Boroughs. The Nomination". West Coast Times. No. 788. 2 April 1868. p. 5. Retrieved 4 May 2013.
- ^ McRobie, Alan (1989). Electoral Atlas of New Zealand. Wellington: GP Books. p. 36. ISBN 0-477-01384-8.
- ^ Scholefield, Guy, ed. (1940). A Dictionary of New Zealand Biography : A–L (PDF). Vol. I. Wellington: Department of Internal Affairs. p. 364. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
- ^ "West Coast Times". National Library of New Zealand. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ a b "The Westland Boroughs". West Coast Times. No. 790. 4 April 1868. p. 2. Retrieved 4 May 2013.
- ^ "West Coast Times (editorial)". West Coast Times. No. 790. 4 April 1868. p. 5. Retrieved 4 May 2013.
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