# Rodney (New Zealand electorate)

Rodney was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the House of Representatives. The last MP for Rodney was Mark Mitchell of the National Party. He held this position from 2011 until the electorate was replaced with Whangaparāoa in 2020. Mitchell stood for and won that seat.

## Population centres

The 1941 New Zealand census had been postponed due to World War II, so the 1946 electoral redistribution had to take ten years of population growth and movements into account. The North Island gained a further two electorates from the South Island due to faster population growth. The abolition of the country quota through the Electoral Amendment Act, 1945 reduced the number and increased the size of rural electorates. None of the existing electorates remained unchanged, 27 electorates were abolished, 19 electorates were created for the first time, and eight former electorates were re-established, including Rodney.
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 Rodney), and six electorates were abolished.
The 1987 electoral redistribution took the continued population growth in the North Island into account, and two additional general electorates were created, bringing the total number of electorates to 97. In the South Island, the shift of population to Christchurch had continued. Overall, three electorates were newly created, three electorates were recreated, and four electorates were abolished (including Rodney). All of those electorates were in the North Island. Changes in the South Island were restricted to boundary changes. These changes came into effect with the 1987 election.
Rodney covers an area of the northern Auckland region from Warkworth in the north, south through the Hibiscus Coast to Auckland's northern urban fringe. High population growth in north and west Auckland has led to Rodney shrinking – Helensville and Kumeū were taken out in 1999, and the next major town to be removed was Wellsford after the 2006 census.
At the 2020 general election, Rodney was abolished, with the northern section around Warkworth being merged with most of Helensville into Kaipara ki Mahurangi, and the southern section becoming the bulk of the new Whangaparāoa electorate.

## History

Rodney was first created for the 1871 election and was represented by four MPs from 1871 to 1890: Harry Farnall 1871–1872 (resigned); John Sheehan 1872–1879 (elected for Thames in 1879); Seymour Thorne George 1879–1884 (retired); and William Pollock Moat 1884–1890 (retired).
Its first recreation was from the 1946 election to 1978, and was recreated for a single term six years later for the 1984 election.
Rodney was again recreated ahead of the change to mixed-member proportional (MMP) voting in 1996. Its original incarnation was coterminous with the district for which it is named – most of the old Albany seat minus its eponymous town, with a large section of Kaipara tacked onto the northern fringe. Both of these seats were held by National MPs – Lockwood Smith in Kaipara and then Deputy Prime Minister Don McKinnon in Albany. Smith won his party's nomination for what is a safe National seat and has held it until the 2011 election, when he stood as a list candidate only. In the 1996 election, Mike Lee came second standing as an Independent.

### Members of Parliament

Key
Independent National Green NZ First Labour
| Election | Winner |
| 1871 election | Harry Farnall |
| 1872 by-election | John Sheehan |
| 1876 election | John Sheehan |
| 1879 election | Seymour George |
| 1881 election | Seymour George |
| 1884 election | William Moat |
| 1887 election | William Moat |
| (Electorate abolished 1890–1946) |||
| 1946 election | Clifton Webb |
| 1949 election | Clifton Webb |
| 1951 election | Clifton Webb |
| 1954 election | Jack Scott |
| 1957 election | Jack Scott |
| 1960 election | Jack Scott |
| 1963 election | Jack Scott |
| 1966 election | Jack Scott |
| 1969 election | Peter Wilkinson |
| 1972 election | Peter Wilkinson |
| 1975 election | Peter Wilkinson |
| (Electorate abolished 1978–1984, see Albany) |||
| 1984 election | Don McKinnon |
| (Electorate abolished 1987–1996, see Albany) |||
| 1996 election | Lockwood Smith |
| 1999 election | Lockwood Smith |
| 2002 election | Lockwood Smith |
| 2005 election | Lockwood Smith |
| 2008 election | Lockwood Smith |
| 2011 election | Mark Mitchell |
| 2014 election | Mark Mitchell |
| 2017 election | Mark Mitchell |
| (Electorate abolished in 2020; see Whangaparāoa) |||

### List MPs

Members of Parliament elected from party lists in elections where that person also unsuccessfully contested the Rodney electorate. Unless otherwise stated, all MPs terms began and ended at general elections.
| Election | Winner |
| 1999 election | Penny Webster |
| 1999 election | Sue Bradford |
| 2002 election | Sue Bradford |
| 2002 election | Craig McNair |
| 2011 election | Tracey Martin |
| 2014 election | Tracey Martin |
| 2017 election | Tracey Martin |
| 2017 election | Marja Lubeck |

## Election results
### 2017 election

2017 general election: Rodney :
| Notes: | Notes: | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Party votes | % | ±% |
| | National | Y Mark Mitchell | Y Mark Mitchell | 28,140 | 63.14 | +0.14 | 27,010 | 61.02 | -1.37 |
| | Labour | Marja Lubeck | Marja Lubeck | 8,579 | 19.25 | +8.23 | 10,571 | 23.35 | +11.05 |
| | NZ First | Tracey Martin | Tracey Martin | 4,381 | 9.83 | -0.32 | 3,955 | 8.73 | -0.34 |
| | Green | Harrison Burnard | Harrison Burnard | 2,503 | 5.62 | -3.25 | 2,084 | 4.60 | -3.90 |
| | Opportunities | Brittany Owens | Brittany Owens | 963 | 2.16 | — | 805 | 1.78 | — |
| | ACT | | | | | | 389 | 0.86 | +0.37 |
| | Conservative | | | | | | 130 | 0.29 | -6.46 |
| | Legalise Cannabis | | | | | | 116 | 0.26 | −0.05 |
| | Māori Party | | | | | | 103 | 0.23 | -0.13 |
| | Outdoors | | | | | | 32 | 0.07 | — |
| | United Future | | | | | | 27 | 0.06 | −0.15 |
| | People's Party | | | | | | 20 | 0.04 | — |
| | Ban 1080 | | | | | | 17 | 0.04 | -0.03 |
| | Internet | | | | | | 11 | 0.02 | -0.57 |
| | Democrats | | | | | | 8 | 0.02 | -0.02 |
| | Mana Party | | | | | | 3 | 0.01 | -0.58 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 220 | | | 70 | | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 44,566 | | | 45,281 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,351 | | | | | |
| | National hold | National hold | Majority | 19,561 | 43.89 | -7.44 | | | |

### 2014 election

2014 general election: Rodney :
| Notes: | Notes: | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Party votes | % | ±% |
| | National | Y Mark Mitchell | Y Mark Mitchell | 24,519 | 63.00 | +9.46 | 24,051 | 61.02 | −1.12 |
| | Labour | Eric Bolt | Eric Bolt | 4,289 | 11.02 | −2.65 | 4,847 | 12.30 | −1.13 |
| | NZ First | Tracey Martin | Tracey Martin | 3,951 | 10.15 | +6.25 | 3,575 | 9.07 | +2.10 |
| | Green | Malcolm McAll | Malcolm McAll | 3,454 | 8.87 | +1.75 | 3,351 | 8.50 | +0.03 |
| | Conservative | Anton Heyns | Anton Heyns | 2,210 | 5.68 | −15.55 | 2,661 | 6.75 | +0.37 |
| | ACT | Beth Houlbrooke | Beth Houlbrooke | 244 | 0.63 | +0.09 | 192 | 0.49 | −0.70 |
| | Internet Mana | | | | | | 231 | 0.59 | +0.44 |
| | Māori Party | | | | | | 142 | 0.36 | +0.00 |
| | Legalise Cannabis | | | | | | 123 | 0.31 | −0.08 |
| | United Future | | | | | | 81 | 0.21 | −0.19 |
| | Ban 1080 | | | | | | 29 | 0.07 | +0.07 |
| | Democrats | | | | | | 15 | 0.04 | +0.01 |
| | Independent Coalition | | | | | | 12 | 0.03 | +0.03 |
| | Civilian | | | | | | 8 | 0.02 | +0.02 |
| | Focus | | | | | | 5 | 0.01 | +0.01 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 255 | | | 91 | | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 38,922 | | | 39,414 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,414 | 81.63 | +3.58 | | | |
| | National hold | National hold | Majority | 20,230 | 51.33 | +19.02 | | | |

### 2011 election

2011 general election: Rodney :
| Notes: | Notes: | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Party votes | % | ±% |
| | National | Mark Mitchell | Mark Mitchell | 20,253 | 53.54 | -6.87 | 23,967 | 62.15 | +3.16 |
| | Conservative | Colin Craig | Colin Craig | 8,031 | 21.23 | +21.23 | 2,459 | 6.38 | +6.38 |
| | Labour | Christine Rose | Christine Rose | 5,170 | 13.67 | -5.13 | 5,178 | 13.43 | -7.19 |
| | Green | Teresa Moore | Teresa Moore | 2,694 | 7.12 | -0.57 | 3,265 | 8.47 | +3.29 |
| | NZ First | Tracey Martin | Tracey Martin | 1,476 | 3.90 | -0.35 | 2,688 | 6.97 | +2.44 |
| | ACT | Beth Houlbrooke | Beth Houlbrooke | 204 | 0.54 | -4.15 | 460 | 1.19 | -5.37 |
| | United Future | | | | | | 154 | 0.40 | -0.36 |
| | Legalise Cannabis | | | | | | 151 | 0.39 | +0.03 |
| | Māori Party | | | | | | 140 | 0.36 | -0.12 |
| | Mana | | | | | | 58 | 0.15 | +0.15 |
| | Libertarianz | | | | | | 18 | 0.05 | +0.02 |
| | Democrats | | | | | | 13 | 0.03 | +0.01 |
| | Alliance | | | | | | 12 | 0.03 | -0.03 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 615 | | | 257 | | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 37,828 | | | 38,563 | | |
| | National hold | National hold | Majority | 12,222 | 32.31 | -9.31 | | | |
Electorate (as at 26 November 2011): 49,407

### 2008 election

2008 general election: Rodney :
| Notes: | Notes: | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Party votes | % | ±% |
| | National | Y Lockwood Smith | Y Lockwood Smith | 22,698 | 60.41 | | 22,441 | 58.99 | |
| | Labour | Conor Roberts | Conor Roberts | 7,063 | 18.80 | | 7,842 | 20.61 | |
| | Green | David Hay | David Hay | 2,890 | 7.69 | | 1,969 | 5.18 | |
| | ACT | Beryl Good | Beryl Good | 1,760 | 4.68 | | 2,496 | 6.56 | |
| | NZ First | Tracey Martin | Tracey Martin | 1,599 | 4.26 | | 1,722 | 4.53 | |
| | Family Party | Karl Adams | Karl Adams | 735 | 1.96 | | 226 | 0.59 | |
| | Kiwi | Simonne Dyer | Simonne Dyer | 581 | 1.55 | | 327 | 0.86 | |
| | United Future | Kathleen Deal | Kathleen Deal | 245 | 0.65 | | 288 | 0.76 | |
| | Progressive | | | | | | 197 | 0.52 | |
| | Māori Party | | | | | | 182 | 0.48 | |
| | Bill and Ben | | | | | | 150 | 0.39 | |
| | Legalise Cannabis | | | | | | 136 | 0.36 | |
| | Alliance | | | | | | 24 | 0.06 | |
| | Libertarianz | | | | | | 11 | 0.03 | |
| | Democrats | | | | | | 9 | 0.02 | |
| | Workers Party | | | | | | 8 | 0.02 | |
| | Pacific | | | | | | 5 | 0.01 | |
| | RAM | | | | | | 5 | 0.01 | |
| | RONZ | | | | | | 4 | 0.01 | |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 226 | | | 107 | | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 37,571 | | | 38,042 | | |
| | National hold | National hold | Majority | 15,635 | 41.61 | +10.57 | | | |

### 2005 election

2005 general election: Rodney :
| Notes: | Notes: | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. | Blue background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member, or other incumbent. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively. |
| Party | Party | Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Party votes | % | ±% |
| | National | Y Lockwood Smith | Y Lockwood Smith | 20,651 | 55.57 | +16.99 | 19,799 | 52.65 | |
| | Labour | Tony Dunlop | Tony Dunlop | 9,115 | 24.53 | -0.85 | 10,462 | 27.82 | |
| | NZ First | Craig McNair | Craig McNair | 3,496 | 9.41 | | 3,089 | 8.08 | |
| | Green | Graham Evans | Graham Evans | 1,918 | 5.16 | | 1,631 | 4.34 | |
| | United Future | Peter Mountain | Peter Mountain | 997 | 2.68 | | 1,162 | 3.09 | |
| | ACT | Christopher Brown | Christopher Brown | 450 | 1.21 | | 678 | 1.80 | |
| | Progressive | Tony Sharrock | Tony Sharrock | 332 | 0.89 | | 319 | 0.85 | |
| | Māori Party | Adell Dick | Adell Dick | 166 | 0.45 | | 107 | 0.28 | |
| | Direct Democracy | Colin Punter | Colin Punter | 36 | 0.10 | | 2 | 0.01 | |
| | Destiny | | | | | | 238 | 0.63 | |
| | Legalise Cannabis | | | | | | 58 | 0.15 | |
| | Christian Heritage | | | | | | 36 | 0.10 | |
| | Alliance | | | | | | 18 | 0.05 | |
| | Democrats | | | | | | 15 | 0.04 | |
| | Family Rights | | | | | | 8 | 0.02 | |
| | Libertarianz | | | | | | 7 | 0.02 | |
| | 99 MP | | | | | | 6 | 0.02 | |
| | RONZ | | | | | | 6 | 0.02 | |
| | One NZ | | | | | | 3 | 0.01 | |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 353 | | | 145 | | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 37,161 | | | 37,605 | | |
| | National hold | National hold | Majority | 11,536 | 31.04 | +16.84 | | | |

### 1999 election

Refer to Candidates in the New Zealand general election 1999 by electorate#Rodney for a list of candidates.

## Table footnotes

* ↑ 2017 Internet Party swing is relative to the votes for Internet-Mana in 2014; it shared a party list with Mana Party in the 2014 election
* ↑ 2017 Mana Party swing is relative to the votes for Internet-Mana in 2014; it shared a party list with the Internet Party in the 2014 election
* ↑ 2014 Internet Mana swing is relative to the votes for Mana in 2011; it shared a party list with Internet in the 2014 election.