# 1928 New Zealand general election

The 1928 New Zealand general election was held on 13 and 14 November in the Māori and European electorates, respectively, to elect 80 MPs to the 23rd session of the New Zealand Parliament.
1928 was the year postal voting was introduced for certain specified groups (e.g. invalids) who could not get to a polling booth on election day.

## The election

The 1928 election was held on Tuesday, 13 November in the Māori electorates, and on Wednesday, 14 November in the general electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 23rd session of Parliament. A total of 844,633 electors were registered on the European roll, of which 743,691 (88.05%) turned out to vote. All 80 electorates were contested. 47 and 29 electorates were in the North Island and South Island, respectively, plus the 4 Māori electorates.
In 1927, a faction of the decaying Liberal Party formed a new organisation, which was eventually named the United Party. In 1928, to the considerable surprise of most observers and many members of the party itself, United won a considerable victory, taking Auckland East and Grey Lynn from Labour. The United Government came to power with Labour support. Labour, forming the official opposition since 1926, were thus replaced by Reform. Six Independents were elected (most with allegiances to the main parties. Four of these backed United, one supported Reform and one favoured neither.
The Bay of Islands electorate went to Harold Rushworth of the Country Party after a recount of the votes, but the election was declared void January 1929. Rushworth won the resulting by-election. This marked the Country Party's first entry into Parliament, where it would retain a presence until 1938.

## Result by party

The table below shows the result of the 1928 election.
Election results :
| Party | Party | Candidates | Total votes | Percentage | Seats won | Change |
| | Reform | 74 | 271,259 | 35.87 | 28$^1$ | -27 |
| | United | 60 | 228,438 | 30.20 | 27$^2$ | +16 |
| | Labour | 59 | 197,953 | 26.17 | 19 | +7 |
| | Country Party | 5 | 11,990 | 1.59 | 1 | +1 |
| | Ratana | 3 | 4,924 | 0.65 | 0 | ±0 |
| | Independent | 30 | 41,767 | 5.52 | 5 | +3 |
| Total | Total | 231 | 756,331 | | 80 | |
$^1$ Includes two who won as Independent Reform
$^2$ United previously contested as Liberal

### Votes summary

Popular Vote
Reform
35.87%
United
30.20%
Labour
26.17%
Country
1.59%
Ratana
0.65%
Independent
5.52% :
Parliament seats
Reform
35.00%
United
33.75%
Labour
23.75%
Country
1.25%
Independent
6.25% :

## Initial composition of the 23rd Parliament

The United Party was organised in the House of Representatives, prior to the dissolution of the 22nd Parliament.
The Auckland Star reported on 18 September 1928, that:
   ...the United Party were assembled yesterday in Wellington when Sir Joseph Ward accepted the leadership of the party. It had previously been decided, by unanimous resolution, that the party should go to the polls as "The United Party"...
The Evening Post newspaper reported on the same day that:
   The Rt. Hon. Sir Joseph Ward took his seat as Leader of the United Party in the House of Representatives this afternoon, Mr G.W. Forbes, who has led the Nationalist Party up to the present, relinquishing his former place in favour of Sir Joseph. From now until the end of the session the Nationalist Party ceases to exist under that name.
Key
United  Reform  Labour  Country Party  Liberal–Labour  Ratana  Independent
Electorate results for the 1928 New Zealand general election :
| Electorate | Incumbent | Incumbent | Winner | Winner | Majority | Runner up |
| General electorates ||||||||
| Auckland Central | | Bill Parry | Bill Parry | Bill Parry | 3,024 | William Hewitt |
| Auckland East | | John A. Lee | | James Donald | 37 | John A. Lee |
| Auckland Suburbs | New electorate | New electorate | | Rex Mason | 1,098 | Sir James Gunson |
| Auckland West | | Michael Joseph Savage | Michael Joseph Savage | Michael Joseph Savage | 1,341 | Richard Speirs |
| Avon | | Dan Sullivan | Dan Sullivan | Dan Sullivan | 3,845 | George Thomas Baker |
| Awarua | | John Hamilton | | Philip De La Perrelle | 1,005 | John Hamilton |
| Bay of Islands | | Allen Bell | | Harold Rushworth | 2 | Allen Bell |
| Bay of Plenty | | Kenneth Williams | Kenneth Williams | Kenneth Williams | 1,867 | Alexander Moncur |
| Buller | | Harry Holland | Harry Holland | Harry Holland | 3,617 | Dugald Macdonald Robertson |
| Central Otago | New electorate | New electorate | | William Bodkin | 653 | James Ritchie |
| Chalmers | | James Dickson | | Alfred Ansell | 619 | Norman Hartley Campbell |
| Christchurch East | | Tim Armstrong | Tim Armstrong | Tim Armstrong | 2,260 | Denis Franklyn Dennehy |
| Christchurch North | | Henry Holland | Henry Holland | Henry Holland | 1,892 | Ernest Andrews |
| Christchurch South | | Ted Howard | Ted Howard | Ted Howard | 433 | Charlie McCully |
| Clutha | | Fred Waite | Fred Waite | Fred Waite | 523 | Joseph Stephens |
| Dunedin Central | | Sir Charles Statham | Sir Charles Statham | Sir Charles Statham | 1,771 | John Robinson |
| Dunedin North | | Harold Tapley | | Jim Munro | 1,231 | Harold Tapley |
| Dunedin South | | Thomas Sidey | | William Taverner | 33 | Robert William Hall |
| Dunedin West | | Downie Stewart | Downie Stewart | Downie Stewart | 1,277 | Cornelius Machin Moss |
| Eden | | Rex Mason | | Arthur Stallworthy | 2,436 | Vivian Potter |
| Egmont | | Oswald Hawken | | Charles Wilkinson | 1,286 | Oswald Hawken |
| Franklin | | Ewen McLennan | | Jack Massey | 134 | Harry Mellsop |
| Gisborne | | Douglas Lysnar | | Douglas Lysnar (Ind R) | 346 | David Coleman |
| Grey Lynn | | Fred Bartram | | John Fletcher | 64 | Fred Bartram |
| Hamilton | | Alexander Young | Alexander Young | Alexander Young | 1,073 | Samuel Charles Gale Lye |
| Hauraki | New electorate | New electorate | | Arthur Hall | 891 | Ebenezer Allan |
| Hawke's Bay | | Hugh Campbell | Hugh Campbell | Hugh Campbell | 690 | Jack Lyon |
| Hurunui | | George Forbes | George Forbes | George Forbes | 1,839 | Leslie Robert Cathcart Macfarlane |
| Hutt | | Thomas Wilford | Thomas Wilford | Thomas Wilford | 1,305 | Walter Nash |
| Invercargill | | Sir Joseph Ward, Bt. | Sir Joseph Ward, Bt. | Sir Joseph Ward, Bt. | 3,178 | Morell Macalister |
| Kaiapoi | | David Buddo | | Richard Hawke | 96 | James Arthur Flesher |
| Kaipara | | Gordon Coates | Gordon Coates | Gordon Coates | 2,475 | Jim Barclay |
| Lyttelton | | James McCombs | James McCombs | James McCombs | 1,867 | John Beanland |
| Manawatu | | Joseph Linklater | Joseph Linklater | Joseph Linklater | 1,466 | Patrick James Small |
| Manukau | | Bill Jordan | Bill Jordan | Bill Jordan | 3,659 | Kells Mason |
| Marsden | | William Jones | | Alfred Murdoch | 450 | William Jones |
| Masterton | | George Sykes | George Sykes | George Sykes | 1,238 | William Thompson |
| Mataura | | George Anderson | | David McDougall | 62 | George Anderson |
| Mid-Canterbury | New electorate | New electorate | | David Jones | 55 | Jeremiah Connolly |
| Motueka | | Richard Hudson | | George Black | 613 | Richard Hudson |
| Napier | | John Mason | | Bill Barnard | 418 | John Mason |
| Nelson | | Harry Atmore | Harry Atmore | Harry Atmore | 2,309 | Frederick William Oscar Smith |
| New Plymouth | New electorate | New electorate | | Sydney Smith | 1,467 | Charles Bellringer |
| Oamaru | | Ernest Lee | | John Macpherson | 337 | Ernest Lee |
| Oroua | | John Eliott | | John Cobbe | 732 | John Eliott |
| Otaki | | William Field | William Field | William Field | 813 | Archibald Burnett Sievwright |
| Pahiatua | | Alfred Ransom | Alfred Ransom | Alfred Ransom | 922 | Harold Smith |
| Palmerston | | Jimmy Nash | Jimmy Nash | Jimmy Nash | 2,350 | Walter Bromley |
| Parnell | | James S. Dickson | | Harry Jenkins | 849 | James S. Dickson |
| Patea | | Harold Dickie | Harold Dickie | Harold Dickie | 182 | James Douglas Hislop |
| Raglan | | Lee Martin | Lee Martin | Lee Martin | 1,041 | Walter Seavill |
| Rangitikei | | Billy Glenn | | James Hogan | 1,234 | Billy Glenn |
| Riccarton | | Bert Kyle | Bert Kyle | Bert Kyle | 45 | Archibald Albany McLachlan |
| Roskill | | Vivian Potter | | George Munns | 2,344 | Arthur Richards |
| Rotorua | | Frank Hockly | | Cecil Clinkard | 200 | Frank Hockly |
| Stratford | | Edward Walter | | William Polson | 982 | Edward Walter |
| Tauranga | | Charles Macmillan | Charles Macmillan | Charles Macmillan | 678 | Douglas Charles Chalmers |
| Temuka | | Thomas Burnett | Thomas Burnett | Thomas Burnett | 86 | Thomas Herbert Langford |
| Thames | | Thomas Rhodes | | Albert Samuel | 1,302 | John Sommerville Montgomerie |
| Timaru | | Frank Rolleston | | Clyde Carr | 467 | Frank Rolleston |
| Waikato | | Stewart Reid | | Frederick Lye | 86 | Stewart Reid |
| Waimarino | | Robert Smith | | Frank Langstone | 985 | Robert Smith |
| Waipawa | | Sir George Hunter | Sir George Hunter | Sir George Hunter | 1,860 | Ernest Albert Goodger |
| Wairarapa | | Alex McLeod | | Thomas McDonald | 566 | Alex McLeod |
| Wairau | | William Girling | | Edward Healy | 292 | William Girling |
| Waitaki | | John Bitchener | John Bitchener | John Bitchener | 1,202 | Frederick Cooke |
| Waitemata | | Alexander Harris | Alexander Harris | Alexander Harris | 315 | Reginald Greville |
| Waitomo | | John Rolleston | | Walter Broadfoot | 532 | John Rolleston |
| Wallace | | Adam Hamilton | Adam Hamilton | Adam Hamilton | 20 | Walter Taylor |
| Wanganui | | Bill Veitch | Bill Veitch | Bill Veitch | 2,137 | Bill Rogers |
| Wellington Central | | Peter Fraser | Peter Fraser | Peter Fraser | 3,458 | Dunbar Sloane |
| Wellington East | | Thomas Forsyth | | Bob Semple | 966 | Thomas Forsyth |
| Wellington North | | Sir John Luke | | Charles Chapman | 47 | Sir John Luke |
| Wellington South | | Robert McKeen | Robert McKeen | Robert McKeen | 2,953 | Martin Luckie |
| Wellington Suburbs | | Robert Wright | Robert Wright | Robert Wright | 1,985 | Tom Brindle |
| Westland | | Tom Seddon | | James O'Brien | 185 | Tom Seddon |
| Māori electorates ||||||||
| Eastern Maori | | Sir Āpirana Ngata | Sir Āpirana Ngata | Sir Āpirana Ngata | 3,104 | Pita Moko |
| Northern Maori | | Taurekareka Henare | Taurekareka Henare | Taurekareka Henare | 880 | Paraire Karaka Paikea |
| Southern Maori | | Henare Uru | | Tuiti Makitanara | 1 | Eruera Tirikatene |
| Western Maori | | Sir Māui Pōmare | Sir Māui Pōmare | Sir Māui Pōmare | 1,599 | Toko Ratana |