# Raglan (New Zealand electorate)

Raglan is a former New Zealand parliamentary electorate. It existed for three periods between 1861 and 1996 and during that time, it was represented by 13 Members of Parliament.

## Population centres

In the 1860 electoral redistribution, the House of Representatives increased the number of representatives by 12, reflecting the immense population growth since the original electorates were established in 1853. The redistribution created 15 additional electorates with between one and three members, and Raglan was one of the single-member electorates. It was created by splitting the Southern Division electorate into two areas, and the eastern part was called Franklin, while the western part was called Raglan. The electorates were distributed to provinces so that every province had at least two members. Within each province, the number of registered electors by electorate varied greatly. The Raglan electorate had 482 registered electors for the 1861 election. In 1861 it was named Raglan, but that town had the only polling station between the southern boundary of the Mokau River and Waiuku, the majority being in the Auckland suburbs. The northern boundary was close to the centre of Auckland, bordering on Newton District. The southern boundary was the Mokau River and the eastern, the Great South Road.
The Raglan electorate was on the West coast of the Waikato region, and was based on the small town of Raglan.
In the 1911 electoral redistribution, the North Island gained a further seat from the South Island due to faster population growth. In addition, there were substantial population movements within each island, and significant changes resulted from this. Only four electorates were unaltered, five electorates were abolished, one former electorate was re-established (Raglan), and four electorates were created for the first time. Raglan was created by the Franklin electorate moving north, and the Waikato electorate moving south.
The 1981 census had shown that the North Island had experienced further population growth, and three additional general seats were created through the 1983 electoral redistribution, bringing the total number of electorates to 95. The South Island had, for the first time, experienced a population loss, but its number of general electorates was fixed at 25 since the 1967 electoral redistribution. More of the South Island population was moving to Christchurch, and two electorates were abolished, while two electorates were recreated. In the North Island, six electorates were newly created, three electorates were recreated (including Raglan), and six electorates were abolished.

## History

The Raglan electorate existed from 1860 to 1870, from 1911 to 1978, and then from 1984 to 1996. The first election was held on 11 February 1861 and was won by Charles John Taylor, who had previously represented the Southern Division electorate.
In 1996, Simon Upton who was then the MP for Raglan chose to become a list MP. He resigned in 2001.

### Members of Parliament

The Raglan electorate was represented by 13 Members of Parliament.
Key
Independent  Reform  Labour  National
| Election | Winner |
| 1861 election | Charles John Taylor |
| 1865 by-election | William Buckland |
| 1866 election | Joseph Newman |
| 1867 by-election | James Farmer |
| (Abolished 1870–1911; see Waikato and Franklin) |||
| 1911 election | Richard Bollard |
| 1914 election | Richard Bollard |
| 1919 election | Richard Bollard |
| 1922 election | Richard Bollard |
| 1925 election | Richard Bollard |
| 1927 by-election | Lee Martin |
| 1928 election | Lee Martin |
| 1931 election | Stewart Reid |
| 1935 election | Lee Martin (2nd period) |
| 1938 election | Lee Martin (2nd period) |
| 1943 election | Robert Coulter |
| 1946 by-election | Hallyburton Johnstone |
| 1946 election | Alan Baxter |
| 1949 election | Hallyburton Johnstone (2nd period) |
| 1951 election | Hallyburton Johnstone (2nd period) |
| 1954 election | Hallyburton Johnstone (2nd period) |
| 1957 election | Douglas Carter |
| 1960 election | Douglas Carter |
| 1963 election | Douglas Carter |
| 1966 election | Douglas Carter |
| 1969 election | Douglas Carter |
| 1972 election | Douglas Carter |
| 1975 election | Marilyn Waring |
| (Abolished 1978–1984) |||
| 1984 election | Simon Upton |
| 1987 election | Simon Upton |
| 1990 election | Simon Upton |
| 1993 election | Simon Upton |
| (Electorate abolished in 1996; see Port Waikato) |||

## Election results
### 1946 election

1946 general election: Raglan :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Alan Baxter | 6,821 | 49.17 | +0.74 |
| | National | Hallyburton Johnstone | 6,808 | 49.08 | −2.49 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 241 | 1.73 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13 | 0.09 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 13,870 | | |
In an electoral court ruling Baxter gained 2 votes while losing 83, while Johnstone lost 61 votes from the original result.

### 1946 by-election

1946 Raglan by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | National | Hallyburton Johnstone | 5,044 | 51.57 |
| | Labour | Alan Baxter | 4,735 | 48.43 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 309 | 3.15 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,779 | 67.67 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,451 | |

### 1943 election

1943 general election: Raglan :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Robert Coulter | 4,817 | 47.99 |
| | National | Robert James Glasgow | 4,709 | 46.92 |
| | Democratic Labour | Alwyn Temple Dillon | 289 | 2.87 |
| | Real Democracy | Stanley Burton | 221 | 2.20 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 90 | 0.89 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 108 | 1.07 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,036 | |

### 1938 election

1938 general election: Raglan :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Lee Martin | 5,062 | 52.54 |
| | National | Andy Sutherland | 4,458 | 46.27 |
| | Country Party | Albert James Gallichan | 115 | 1.19 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 604 | 6.27 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 95 | 0.98 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,730 | 92.40 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,530 | |

### 1935 election

1935 general election: Raglan :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Lee Martin | 5,148 | 55.48 | +10.81 |
| | Reform | Stewart Reid | 3,453 | 37.21 | −18.12 |
| | Democrat | J H Potter | 581 | 6.26 | |
| | Independent | H Hampton | 96 | 1.03 | |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 97 | 1.04 | +0.37 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,695 | 18.26 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,278 | 89.78 | +9.38 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,334 | | |

### 1931 election

1931 general election: Raglan :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Reform | Stewart Reid | 4,180 | 55.33 |
| | Labour | Lee Martin | 3,374 | 44.67 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 806 | 10.67 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 51 | 0.67 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,605 | 80.40 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,459 | |

### 1928 election

1928 general election: Raglan :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Lee Martin | 4,206 | 55.44 |
| | Reform | Walter Seavill | 3,165 | 41.72 |
| | Independent Reform | William Brown | 216 | 2.85 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,041 | 13.72 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 113 | 1.47 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,700 | 86.38 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 8,914 | |

### 1927 by-election

1927 Raglan by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Lee Martin | 2,200 | 36.36 | |
| | Reform | Harry Waring | 2,025 | 33.47 | |
| | Liberal | Thomas Parker | 1,095 | 18.09 | |
| | Country Party | Cornelius Augustus Magner | 532 | 8.79 | |
| | Independent | William James Taylor | 198 | 3.27 | |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 97 | 1.53 | −0.77 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 175 | 2.89 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,050 | 98.47 | +8.61 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 6,147 | | |
| | Labour gain from Reform | Labour gain from Reform | Swing | | |
Waring (Reform) was the great-grandfather of Marilyn Waring.

### 1925 election

1925 general election: Raglan :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Reform | Richard Bollard | 4,470 | 61.48 |
| | Labour | Ernest Piggott | 1,614 | 22.20 |
| | Liberal | Samuel Charles Gale Lye | 965 | 13.27 |
| | Country Party | Robert Dickinson Duxfield | 222 | 3.05 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,856 | 39.28 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 56 | 0.76 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,327 | 89.86 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 8,154 | |

### 1922 election

1922 general election: :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes |
| | Reform | Richard Bollard | 3,494 |
| | Liberal | Samuel Charles Gale Lye | 2,718 |
| | Labour | E. Piggott | 99 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 776 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 139 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | |

### 1919 election

1914 general election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes |
| | Reform | Richard Bollard | 2,888 |
| | Independent | Campbell Johnstone | 756 |
| | Labour | Bill Jordan | 1,900 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 988 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 64 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 5,608 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | |

### 1914 election

1914 general election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Reform | Richard Bollard | 4,002 | 60.16 |
| | Liberal | William Thompson | 2,554 | 38.39 |
| | Social Democrat | John Furniss | 96 | 1.44 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,552 | 38.36 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 83 | 1.24 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,652 | 89.96 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 7,394 | |

### 1911 election

1911 general election: Raglan, first ballot :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Reform | Richard Bollard | 2,435 | 46.02 |
| | Reform | Allen Bell | 894 | 16.90 |
| | Liberal | James Charles Dromgool | 750 | 14.18 |
| | Liberal | William Duncan | 742 | 14.02 |
| | Independent Liberal | Basil Hewett | 470 | 8.88 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,541 | 29.12 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 99 | 1.84 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 5,390 | 82.01 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 6,572 | |
1911 general election: Raglan, second ballot :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Reform | Richard Bollard | 2,782 | 59.89 |
| | Reform | Allen Bell | 1,863 | 40.11 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 919 | 19.78 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 20 | 0.43 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,665 | 70.98 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 6,572 | |
Table footnotes:
* ↑ Richard Bollard was the official candidate endorsed by the Reform Party; Allen Bell was an unofficial candidate who also stood for the Reform Party.

### 1867 by-election

1867 Raglan by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Independent | James Farmer | 224 | 56.85 |
| | Independent | Joseph Crispe | 127 | 32.23 |
| | Independent | Henry Chamberlin | 43 | 10.91 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 394 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 97 | 24.62 |