# 1976 Hamilton mayoral by-election

The 1976 Hamilton mayoral by-election was held to fill the vacant position of Mayor of Hamilton in New Zealand. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post electoral method.

## Background

Incumbent mayor Mike Minogue resigned mid-term after he was elected to parliament as MP for Hamilton West in November 1975. Seven candidates came forward to succeed him. A by-election for a seat on the Hamilton City Council occurred concurrently after the resignation of Ian James Drabble, who had moved outside of Hamilton.

## Candidates

Seven candidates were nominated, the largest field of candidates for a mayoral election since 1950. The candidates were:
* Bruce Beetham, A lecturer at Hamilton Teachers' College and leader of the Social Credit Party since 1972. He stood unsuccessfully for the Hamilton City Council in 1971 and the Rangitikei electorate in 1972 and 1975.
* Nicholas Gerardus Buysman, A committee member of the Hamilton Businessmen's Club and past president of the Waikato Restaurant Association. He stood unsuccessfully for the Hamilton City Council in 1971 and 1974. He stood for the mayoralty and council vacancies.
* Ross Jansen, A lawyer who was a Hamilton City Councillor from 1965 to 1974 and deputy mayor from 1971 to 1974. In 1972 he stood as the National Party candidate for Hamilton East.
* Douglas Bruce Mills, A building company director and a Hamilton City Councillor, first elected in 1959. Former mayor Denis Rogers endorsed Mills.
* Archibald Henry Otton, A Welsh-born sheepskin store proprietor and ex-serviceman in the Royal New Zealand Air Force.
* Robert Ivan Peace, A manager of a wine company and president of the New Zealand Wine Resellers' Association. He was a member of the Waikato Electric Power Board and had been a Hamilton City Councillor since 1968.
* Matthew Cowley Te Hira, A motor mechanic and insurance salesman.

## Polling

Three telephone polls were conducted.
| Poll | Date | Bruce Beetham | Nicholas Buysman | Ross Jansen | Bruce Mills | Ivan Pearce | Matthew Te Hira |
| The Times | 5 April 1976 | 30.1 | – | 17.1 | 1.8 | 1.4 | 1.4 |
| The Times | 13 April 1976 | 28.7 | – | 19.4 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 0.5 |
| The Times | 21 April 1976 | 38.7 | 0.4 | 18.1 | 2.9 | 1.2 | 0.8 |

## Results

The race quickly became a two-horse race between Beetham and Jansen. Both were attacked by other candidates for being allegedly partisan given Beetham's status as leader of Social Credit and Jansen's affiliation to the National Party. Both countered by saying they would not politicise the office of mayor. The election resulted in Beetham ultimately winning. May Woodcock, a local schoolteacher, won the vacant council seat. Both Beetham and Woodcock were sworn in officially on 12 May.

### Mayoral by-election

1976 Hamilton Mayoral by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Independent | Bruce Beetham | 9,743 | 49.49 |
| | Independent | Ross Jansen | 7,075 | 36.27 |
| | Independent | Bruce Mills | 1,821 | 9.33 |
| | Independent | Ivan Peace | 581 | 2.97 |
| | Independent | Matthew Te Hira | 166 | 0.85 |
| | Independent | Nicholas Buysman | 53 | 0.27 |
| | Independent | Archibald Henry Otton | 23 | 0.11 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 44 | 0.22 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,668 | 13.67 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 19,506 | 48.76 |

### Council by-election

1976 Hamilton City Council by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Independent | May Woodcock | 6,150 | 31.56 |
| | Independent | Raymond Webster Starr | 3,494 | 17.93 |
| | Independent | Ernest George Grylls | 3,368 | 17.28 |
| | Independent | David John Murray Peart | 2,529 | 12.97 |
| | Independent | Nicholas Buysman | 2,086 | 10.70 |
| | Independent | Gordon Batt | 1,179 | 6.05 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 679 | 3.48 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,656 | 13.63 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 19,485 | 48.71 |