# 1935 New Zealand general election

The 1935 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 25th term. It resulted in the Labour Party's first electoral victory, with Michael Joseph Savage becoming the first Labour Prime Minister after defeating the governing coalition, consisting of the United Party and the Reform Party, in a landslide—to date, the worst defeat of a sitting government in New Zealand history.
The governing coalition lost 31 seats, which was attributed by many to their handling of the Great Depression: the year after the election, the United and Reform parties merged to form the modern National Party.
The election was originally scheduled to be held in 1934, in keeping with the country's three-year election cycle, but the governing coalition postponed the election by one year hoping that the economic conditions would improve by 1935.

## Background

Since 1931, New Zealand had been governed by a coalition of the United Party and the Reform Party, the United–Reform Coalition. United and Reform had traditionally been enemies – United was a revival of the old Liberal Party, a progressive party with a strong urban base, while Reform was a conservative party with a strong rural base. When the 1928 elections left United and Reform with an equal number of seats, United managed to obtain support from the growing Labour Party, but in 1931, the worsening depression prompted a dispute over economic policy, and Labour withdrew its backing. Reform then agreed to go into coalition with United, fearing that an election would lead to significant gains for the "socialistic" Labour. The coalition held on to power in the 1931 elections, but the ongoing economic troubles made the government deeply unpopular, and by the time of the 1935 elections, Labour's support was soaring.

## Campaign

The Dominion, a Wellington newspaper, printed anti-Labour advertisements and editorials. On Sunday 24 November, shortly before the election, an address by Colin Scrimgeour ("Uncle Scrim") on the Friendly Road radio station, which was expected to urge listeners to vote Labour, was jammed by the Post Office.

## The election

The number of electorates being contested was 80, a number which had been fixed since the 1902 Electoral Redistribution.
Four of those were Māori electorates, and those elections were held on 26 November. 19 candidates contested the four available positions, and in three out of four cases, the incumbents were returned.
The election in the European electorates was held on the following day, a Wednesday. A total of 246 candidates contested the 76 European electorates, between two and six per electorate (Wellington East had six candidates, and there was a contest in all electorates), i.e. an average of 3.2 candidates per electorate. 919,798 people were registered to vote in European electorates (enrolment data for Māori electorates are only available since the 1954 election), and there was a turnout of 90.75%. This turnout was considerably higher than the turnout in the previous election (84.26%) and the highest turnout so far, but still about average for the next decades.
Elsie Andrews (1888–1948) was one of only three women who stood for election in this year.

## Results
### Summary

The 1935 election saw a massive win for the opposition Labour Party, which won fifty-three seats, and formed the First Labour Government. The governing coalition won only nineteen, and three ministers were defeated (in Hamilton, Tauranga and Waitaki). This difference was not so great in the popular vote, however, with Labour winning 45.7% to the coalition's 33.5%. Labour was more fortunate than its British namesake in not attaining office before the depression (thanks to Seddon's lengthy reign) "and so could hold the conservative coalition responsible if natural laws of economics behaved unnaturally".
Apart from Labour and the coalition, the only two groups to win places in Parliament were the Country Party and the Ratana movement, both of which won two seats.
Four independents were elected, Harry Atmore, David McDougall, Charles Wilkinson and Robert Wright. The independents were tactically supported by one of the major parties who did not stand a candidate against them, and they generally voted with that party; Wilkinson and Wright supported the coalition while Atmore and McDougall supported Labour. Labour also did not stand candidates against the two Country Party members.
Many commentators blamed the coalition's failure to win seats on vote splitting by the Democrat Party, an "anti-socialist" group founded by a former organiser for the governing coalition, Albert Davy, and headed by Thomas Hislop, the Mayor of Wellington. Perhaps as many as eight seats were an unexpected bonus to Labour because of the three-way split. The Democrats won 7.8% of the vote, but no seats.
Two future National MPs stood unsuccessfully: Frederick Doidge stood as an Independent for Rotorua and came second, and Matthew Oram stood for the Democrats in Manawatu and came fourth.
An analysis of men and women on the rolls against the votes recorded showed that in 1935 90.75% of those on the European rolls voted; men 92.02% and women 89.46%. In the 1938 election the figures were 92.85% with men 93.43% and women 92.27%. As the Māori electorates did not have electoral rolls they could not be included.

### Party totals

Election results :
| Party | Party | Party | Candidates | Votes | Percentage | Seats | change |
| | | Labour | 70 | 389,911 | 45.73 | 53 | +29 |
| | | Reform | 74 | 285,422 | 33.48 | 9 | −31 |
| | | United | 74 | 285,422 | 33.48 | 7 | −31 |
| | | Democrats | 53 | 66,695 | 7.82 | 0 | – |
| | | Country Party | 6 | 11,809 | 1.67 | 2 | +1 |
| | | Ratana | 4 | 6,249 | 0.73 | 2 | +2 |
| | | Communist | 4 | 600 | 0.07 | 0 | ±0 |
| | | Independents | 60 | 87,748 | 10.29 | 7 | −1 |
| Total: | Total: | Total: | 267 | 852,637 | 100 | 80 | |

### Votes summary

Popular Vote
Labour
45.73%
United–Reform Coalition
33.48%
Democrats
7.82%
Country Party
1.67%
Ratana
0.73%
Independent
10.57% :
Parliament seats
Labour
66.25%
United–Reform Coalition
23.75%
Country Party
2.50%
Ratana
2.50%
Independent
5.00% :

### Electorate results

The following table shows the detailed results:
Key
Labour  Independent  United  Reform  United/Reform  Democrat  Ratana  Country Party
Electorate results for the 1935 New Zealand general election :
| Electorate | Incumbent | Winner | Winner | Majority | Runner up |
| General electorates ||||||||
| Auckland Central | Bill Parry | Bill Parry | Bill Parry | 5,301 | Clifford Reid Dodd |
| Auckland East | Bill Schramm | Bill Schramm | Bill Schramm | 2,337 | Harold Percy Burton |
| Auckland Suburbs | Rex Mason | Rex Mason | Rex Mason | 4,896 | William Alexander Bishop |
| Auckland West | Michael Joseph Savage | Michael Joseph Savage | Michael Joseph Savage | 6,180 | Ernest David Stallworthy |
| Avon | Dan Sullivan | Dan Sullivan | Dan Sullivan | 5,410 | Lancelot Charles Walker |
| Awarua | Philip De La Perrelle | | James Hargest | 950 | Thomas Francis Doyle |
| Bay of Islands | Harold Rushworth | Harold Rushworth | Harold Rushworth | 2,121 | Clive Cameron |
| Bay of Plenty | vacant | | Gordon Hultquist | 555 | John Tom Merry |
| Buller | Paddy Webb | Paddy Webb | Paddy Webb | 4,499 | John H Powell |
| Central Otago | William Bodkin | William Bodkin | William Bodkin | 1,819 | Herbert Kerr Edie |
| Chalmers | Alfred Ansell | | Archie Campbell | 1,071 | Alfred Ansell |
| Christchurch East | Tim Armstrong | Tim Armstrong | Tim Armstrong | 5,728 | Sydney Richardson |
| Christchurch North | Henry Holland | | Sidney Holland | 971 | Robert Macfarlane |
| Christchurch South | Ted Howard | Ted Howard | Ted Howard | 5,585 | Tom Milliken |
| Clutha | Peter McSkimming | | James Roy | 1,930 | Rev. Edwin Thoms Cox |
| Dunedin Central | Charles Statham | | Peter Neilson | 1,729 | Donald Cameron |
| Dunedin North | Jim Munro | Jim Munro | Jim Munro | 1,668 | Alexander Smith Falconer |
| Dunedin South | Fred Jones | Fred Jones | Fred Jones | 3,378 | Stuart Sidey |
| Dunedin West | William Downie Stewart | | Gervan McMillan | 945 | William Downie Stewart |
| Eden | Arthur Stallworthy | | Bill Anderton | 2,465 | Arthur Stallworthy |
| Egmont | Charles Wilkinson | Charles Wilkinson | Charles Wilkinson | 3,172 | James Ross |
| Franklin | Jack Massey | | Arthur Sexton | 685 | Jack Massey |
| Gisborne | David Coleman | David Coleman | David Coleman | 1,817 | Douglas Lysnar |
| Grey Lynn | John A. Lee | John A. Lee | John A. Lee | 8,012 | George Wildish |
| Hamilton | Alexander Young | | Charles Barrell | 1,391 | Alexander Young |
| Hauraki | Walter William Massey | | Charles Robert Petrie | 544 | Walter William Massey |
| Hawke's Bay | Hugh Campbell | | Ted Cullen | 1,010 | Hugh Campbell |
| Hurunui | George Forbes | George Forbes | George Forbes | 1,203 | Donald Cyrus Davie |
| Hutt | Walter Nash | Walter Nash | Walter Nash | 7,757 | Victor Emmanuel Jacobson |
| Invercargill | James Hargest | | William Denham | 346 | Gordon Reed |
| Kaiapoi | Richard Hawke | | Morgan Williams | 1,424 | Richard Hawke |
| Kaipara | Gordon Coates | Gordon Coates | Gordon Coates | 302 | William Grounds |
| Lyttelton | Terry McCombs | Terry McCombs | Terry McCombs | 2,775 | Seton Fulton Marshall |
| Manawatu | Joseph Linklater | | Lorrie Hunter | 60 | Joseph Linklater |
| Manukau | Bill Jordan | Bill Jordan | Bill Jordan | 6,402 | Herbert Jenner Wily |
| Marsden | Alfred Murdoch | | Jim Barclay | 347 | Alfred Murdoch |
| Masterton | George Sykes | | John Robertson | 325 | George Sykes |
| Mataura | David McDougall | David McDougall | David McDougall | 1,658 | Thomas Golden |
| Mid-Canterbury | vacant | | Horace Herring | 462 | James Carr |
| Motueka | Keith Holyoake | Keith Holyoake | Keith Holyoake | 280 | Rubert York |
| Napier | Bill Barnard | Bill Barnard | Bill Barnard | 4,057 | Frank Bannerman Logan |
| Nelson | Harry Atmore | Harry Atmore | Harry Atmore | 2,610 | Herbert Everett |
| New Plymouth | Sydney George Smith | Sydney George Smith | Sydney George Smith | 831 | Fred Frost |
| Oamaru | John Andrew MacPherson | | Arnold Nordmeyer | 1,142 | John Andrew MacPherson |
| Oroua | John Cobbe | John Cobbe | John Cobbe | 2,333 | William Henry Oliver |
| Otaki | William Hughes Field | | Leonard Lowry | 1,720 | G. A. Monk |
| Pahiatua | Alfred Ransom | Alfred Ransom | Alfred Ransom | 1,175 | R A Gower |
| Palmerston | Jimmy Nash | | Joe Hodgens | 115 | Gus Mansford |
| Parnell | Bill Endean | Bill Endean | Bill Endean | 731 | Arthur Osborne |
| Patea | Harold Dickie | Harold Dickie | Harold Dickie | 649 | W G Simpson |
| Raglan | Lee Martin | Lee Martin | Lee Martin | 1,695 | Stewart Reid |
| Rangitikei | Alexander Stuart | | Ormond Wilson | 907 | Alexander Stuart |
| Riccarton | Bert Kyle | Bert Kyle | Bert Kyle | 1,139 | G T Thurston |
| Roskill | Arthur Shapton Richards | Arthur Shapton Richards | Arthur Shapton Richards | 4,023 | Thomas James Fleming |
| Rotorua | Cecil Clinkard | | Alexander Moncur | 1,452 | Frederick Doidge |
| Stratford | William Polson | William Polson | William Polson | 339 | Philip Skoglund |
| Tauranga | Charles Macmillan | | Charles Burnett | 41 | Charles Macmillan |
| Temuka | Thomas Burnett | Thomas Burnett | Thomas Burnett | 605 | Thomas Herbert Langford |
| Thames | Albert Samuel | | Jim Thorn | 1,262 | Albert Samuel |
| Timaru | Clyde Carr | Clyde Carr | Clyde Carr | 1,059 | W Thomas |
| Waimarino | Frank Langstone | Frank Langstone | Frank Langstone | 1,863 | Cecil Boles |
| Waipawa | Albert Jull | | Max Christie | 259 | Albert Jull |
| Waikato | Frederick Lye | | Robert Coulter | 784 | Frederick Lye |
| Wairarapa | Alex McLeod | | Ben Roberts | 33 | John Wiltshire Card |
| Wairau | Edward Healy | | Ted Meachen | 352 | Edward Healy |
| Waitaki | John Bitchener | | David Barnes | 479 | John Bitchener |
| Waitemata | Alexander Harris | | Jack Lyon | 2,684 | Alexander Harris |
| Waitomo | Walter Broadfoot | Walter Broadfoot | Walter Broadfoot | 1,526 | Jack Jones |
| Wallace | Adam Hamilton | Adam Hamilton | Adam Hamilton | 2,034 | Lawrence Edmond |
| Wanganui | Bill Veitch | | Joe Cotterill | 1,569 | Bill Veitch |
| Wellington Central | Peter Fraser | Peter Fraser | Peter Fraser | 4,479 | Will Mason |
| Wellington East | Bob Semple | Bob Semple | Bob Semple | 3,323 | Ossie Mazengarb |
| Wellington North | Charles Chapman | Charles Chapman | Charles Chapman | 794 | Elizabeth Gilmer |
| Wellington South | Robert McKeen | Robert McKeen | Robert McKeen | 6,059 | Henry Featherston Toogood |
| Wellington Suburbs | Robert Wright | Robert Wright | Robert Wright | 1,856 | Peter Butler |
| Westland | James O'Brien | James O'Brien | James O'Brien | 3,677 | H R Young |
| Māori electorates ||||||||
| Eastern Maori | Āpirana Ngata | Āpirana Ngata | Āpirana Ngata | 3,224 | Tiaki Omana |
| Northern Maori | Taurekareka Hēnare | Taurekareka Hēnare | Taurekareka Hēnare | 983 | Paraire Karaka Paikea |
| Southern Maori | Eruera Tirikatene | Eruera Tirikatene | Eruera Tirikatene | 43 | Thomas Kaiporohu Bragg |
| Western Maori | Taite Te Tomo | | Toko Ratana | 47 | Taite Te Tomo |
Table footnotes:
* ↑ James Hargest ran as an Independent, but was aligned to the Reform Party
* ↑ Kenneth Williams, the previous representative, died two days prior to the election
* ↑ James Roy ran as an Independent, but was aligned to the United–Reform Coalition
* ↑ Jeremiah Connolly, the previous representative, died just prior to the election
* ↑ Father of the historian W. H. Oliver
* ↑ William Polson ran as an Independent, but was aligned to the United–Reform Coalition

## Post-election events

A number of local by-elections were required due to the resignations of incumbent local body politicians following the general election:
* In February 1936 Dan Sullivan resigned as Mayor of Christchurch owing to a heavy workload after becoming a cabinet minister following Labour's victory. This sparked two by-elections, one for the mayoralty and another for three vacancies on the city council. Sullivan was replaced by John Beanland. Among the successful city council candidates was Robert Macfarlane who had contested Christchurch North in 1935.
* Likewise Peter Fraser resigned his seat on the Wellington City Council in order to focus on his new ministerial duties. A by-election was avoided however when Andrew Parlane, the highest polling unsuccessful candidate from the previous election, was the only nominated candidate.
* Later in the parliamentary term Fred Jones resigned his membership of the Dunedin City Council due to his ministerial obligations. An appointment was made instead of holding a by-election with Ralph Harrison succeeding Jones.