# Taranaki (New Zealand electorate)

Taranaki was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate that existed for three periods between 1881 and 1996. It was represented by nine Members of Parliament.

## Population centres

The previous electoral redistribution was undertaken in 1875 for the 1875–1876 election. In the six years since, New Zealand's European population had increased by 65%. In the 1881 electoral redistribution, the House of Representatives increased the number of European representatives to 91 (up from 84 since the 1875–76 election). The number of Māori electorates was held at four. The House further decided that electorates should not have more than one representative, which led to 35 new electorates being formed, including Taranaki, and two electorates that had previously been abolished to be recreated. This necessitated a major disruption to existing boundaries.
The original area included the townships of Ōhura, Waitara, and Inglewood. The Mōkau River was used as the northern boundary. In the 1887 electoral redistribution, the northern boundary moved north, most of it as yet unsurveyed land. The settlements of Mōkau and Awakino were included in the newly gained area to the north, and Stratford was gained in the south.
In the 1896 electoral redistribution, rapid population growth in the North Island required the transfer of three seats from the South Island to the north. Four electorates that previously existed were re-established, including Taranaki, and three electorates were established for the first time. The New Plymouth electorate was abolished, the Egmont electorate shifted north, and the Patea electorate shifted east. This made room for the Hawera and Taranaki electorates.

## History

The electorate existed from 1881 to 1890, from 1896 to 1928, and from 1978 (replacing Stratford) to 1996. In 1996 it was combined with the adjacent King Country to form the Taranaki-King Country electorate.
The first representative was Robert Trimble from 1881 to 1887, who had earlier represented Grey and Bell. The second representative was George Marchant.

### Members of Parliament

Taranaki was represented by nine Members of Parliament.
Key
Independent  Liberal  Reform
Independent Labour  Liberal–Labour  National
| Election | Winner |
| 1881 election | Robert Trimble |
| 1884 election | Robert Trimble |
| 1887 election | George Marchant |
| (Electorate abolished 1890–1896) |||
| 1896 election | Henry Brown |
| 1899 election | Edward Smith |
| 1902 election | Edward Smith |
| 1905 election | Edward Smith |
| 1907 by-election | Henry Okey |
| 1908 election | Henry Okey |
| 1911 election | Henry Okey |
| 1914 election | Henry Okey |
| 1918 by-election | Sydney Smith |
| 1919 election | Sydney Smith |
| 1922 election | Sydney Smith |
| 1925 election | Charles Bellringer |
| (Electorate abolished 1928–1978) |||
| 1978 election | David Thomson |
| 1981 election | David Thomson |
| 1984 election | Roger Maxwell |
| 1987 election | Roger Maxwell |
| 1990 election | Roger Maxwell |
| 1993 election | Roger Maxwell |
| (Electorate abolished in 1996; see Taranaki-King Country) |||

## Election results
### 1925 election

1925 general election: Taranaki :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Reform | Charles Bellringer | 4,615 | 46.28 |
| | Liberal | Sydney George Smith | 4,565 | 45.78 |
| | Labour | William Sheat | 792 | 7.94 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 50 | 0.50 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 56 | 0.56 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,028 | 92.79 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,807 | |

### 1918 by-election

1918 Taranaki by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent Labour | Sydney George Smith | 2,840 | 51.44 | |
| | Reform | John Connett | 2,680 | 48.55 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 160 | 2.89 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 5,520 | 74.19 | −12.62 |

### 1907 by-election

1907 Taranaki by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Henry Okey | 1,991 | 43.02 |
| | Liberal | Edward Dockrill | 1,627 | 35.16 |
| | Independent Liberal | William Malone | 1,010 | 21.82 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 364 | 7.87 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 23 | 0.50 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,651 | 74.96 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 6,205 | |

### 1899 election

1899 general election: Taranaki :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Edward Smith | 2,405 | 51.36 | +7.03 |
| | Conservative | Henry Brown | 2,278 | 48.64 | +1.91 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 127 | 2.71 | +0.30 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,683 | 82.46 | +5.88 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 5,679 | | |