# Pretoria East (House of Assembly of South Africa constituency)

Pretoria East was a constituency in the Transvaal Province of South Africa, which existed from 1910 to 1966 and again from 1974 to 1994. It covered the eastern parts of Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa, and changed its makeup several times over the course of its existence. Throughout its existence it elected one member to the House of Assembly and one to the Transvaal Provincial Council.

## Franchise notes

When the Union of South Africa was formed in 1910, the electoral qualifications in use in each pre-existing colony were kept in place. In the Transvaal Colony, and its predecessor the South African Republic, the vote was restricted to white men, and as such, elections in the Transvaal Province were held on a whites-only franchise from the beginning. The franchise was also restricted by property and education qualifications until the 1933 general election, following the passage of the Women's Enfranchisement Act, 1930 and the Franchise Laws Amendment Act, 1931. From then on, the franchise was given to all white citizens aged 21 or over. Non-whites remained disenfranchised until the end of apartheid and the introduction of universal suffrage in 1994.

## History

As initially created, Pretoria East covered the eastern half of its namesake city, and was one of relatively few seats in Transvaal outside Johannesburg to be held by the Unionist Party. Notably, in the first House of Assembly election in 1910, Prime Minister Louis Botha stood in the seat and lost to Unionist candidate J. P. Fitzpatrick. It changed hands only twice in its history: in 1921, when the Unionist Party merged with the South African Party, and in 1953, when it was won by the National Party. In its final boundaries, delineated in 1981, it covered the outer eastern suburbs of Pretoria, and like other such seats across South Africa, it was an NP stronghold.

## Members

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1910 | J. P. Fitzpatrick | Unionist |
| 1915 | J. P. Fitzpatrick | Unionist |
| 1920 | C. W. Giovanetti | Unionist |
| 1921 | C. W. Giovanetti | South African |
| 1924 | C. W. Giovanetti | South African |
| 1929 | C. W. Giovanetti | South African |
| 1933 | C. W. Giovanetti | South African |
| 1938 | member unknown | United Party |
| 1943 | member unknown | United Party |
| 1948 | member unknown | United Party |
| 1953 | member unknown | National Party |
| 1958 | member unknown | National Party |
| 1961 | member unknown | National Party |
| 1966 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |
| Election | Member | Party |
| 1974 | member unknown | National Party |
| 1977 | J. J. Lloyd | National Party |
| 1981 | Theo Alant | National Party |
| 1987 | Theo Alant | National Party |
| 1989 | Theo Alant | National Party |
| 1994 | constituency abolished |

## Detailed results
### Elections in the 1910s

General election 1910: Pretoria East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | J. P. Fitzpatrick | 1,231 | 52.0 | New |
| | South African | Louis Botha | 1,116 | 48.0 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 115 | 4.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,347 | | N/A |
| | Unionist win (new seat) | Unionist win (new seat) | Unionist win (new seat) | Unionist win (new seat) | Unionist win (new seat) |
General election 1915: Pretoria East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | J. P. Fitzpatrick | 1,495 | 61.3 | +9.3 |
| | National | K. Rood | 644 | 26.4 | New |
| | Labour | A. Grant | 292 | 12.0 | New |
| | Independent | R. J. Smith | 6 | 0.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 851 | 34.9 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,437 | 76.7 | N/A |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1920: Pretoria East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | C. W. Giovanetti | 1,268 | 58.7 | −2.6 |
| | National | W. F. Mondriaan | 471 | 21.8 | −4.6 |
| | Labour | G. H. McLean | 416 | 19.3 | +7.3 |
| | Independent | G. L. Hutchinson | 5 | 0.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 797 | 36.9 | +2.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,160 | 70.8 | −5.9 |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | -1.0 | |
General election 1921: Pretoria East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | South African | C. W. Giovanetti | 1,534 | 76.3 | +17.6 |
| | Independent | E. Burgess | 476 | 23.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,058 | 52.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,010 | 64.1 | −6.7 |
| | South African hold | South African hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1924: Pretoria East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | South African | C. W. Giovanetti | 1,489 | 60.8 | −15.5 |
| | Labour | R. Sharp | 960 | 39.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 529 | 21.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,449 | 80.5 | +16.4 |
| | South African hold | South African hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1929: Pretoria East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | South African | C. W. Giovanetti | 1,754 | 67.1 | +6.3 |
| | National | H. Toms | 860 | 32.9 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 894 | 34.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,614 | 80.0 | −0.5 |
| | South African hold | South African hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1933: Pretoria East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | South African | C. W. Giovanetti | 3,695 | 77.2 | +10.1 |
| | Roos | A. Davis | 1,090 | 22.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,605 | 54.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,785 | 67.5 | −12.5 |
| | South African hold | South African hold | Swing | N/A | |