# 1987 New Zealand general election

The 1987 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the 42nd sitting of the New Zealand Parliament. The governing New Zealand Labour Party, led by Prime Minister David Lange, was re-elected for a second term, although the Opposition National Party made gains. The election also saw the elimination of the Democratic Party (formerly the Social Credit Party) from Parliament, leaving Labour and National as the only parties represented.
1987 marked the first time that a Labour Government had been reelected to a second term since 1938, and the first to be reelected overall since 1946. This was in spite of the fact that this was the fourth consecutive election in which Labour won the popular vote.

## Background

Before the election, the Labour Party (in government) held 56 seats, giving it an absolute majority in Parliament. The National Party (in opposition) held 37 seats. The Democrats, a small party devoted to the principles of Social Credit, held two seats. The 1985 Timaru by-election, triggered by the death of sitting MP Sir Basil Arthur had resulted in National winning the seat from Labour.
Of particular importance in the election were the economic reforms being undertaken by Roger Douglas, the Minister of Finance. These reforms, sometimes known as "Rogernomics", involved monetarist approaches to controlling inflation, corporatisation of government departments, and the removal of tariffs and subsidies. All these things were strongly opposed by many traditional Labour supporters, who saw them as a betrayal of the party's left-wing principles. Many commentators believed that public anger over Rogernomics could cost the government the election.
Another matter of importance, and perhaps one which enabled Labour to survive public dissatisfaction, was the nuclear issue. In the previous parliamentary term, New Zealand had adopted the New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act, which prevented nuclear weapons or nuclear-powered ships entering New Zealand, a move which provoked an angry reaction from New Zealand's allies in the ANZUS treaty. The National Party intended to revoke the ban, but the New Zealand public were supportive of it. Labour's support for the ban is often considered to be an important factor in the party's re-election.
National was also bitterly divided, with some supporting the Rogernomics reforms, but MPs such as former Prime Minister Robert Muldoon bitterly opposed. Muldoon had undermined his successor as party leader, Jim McLay, who was replaced by his deputy Jim Bolger in 1986. Bolger was more centrist, but National still struggled to be seen as an alternative government. Lange famously mocked Bolger as "an itinerant masseur, massaging the politically erogenous zones." Several groups on the Christian Right (such as the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), Coalition of Concerned Citizens (CCC) and Women for Life) attempted to obtain electoral influence by infiltrating the National Party. They attempted to select socially conservative Christians as candidates to oppose the Labour government's policies towards peace education, sex education, abortion, Māori biculturalism, and the ANZUS alliance. Several CCC supporters contested the election as National candidates, including Rob Wheeler (Mount Albert), Andrew Stanley (Onehunga), and Howard Martin (Papatoetoe). However, the efforts met little electoral success as none were elected.

### MPs retiring in 1987

Six National MPs and six Labour MPs intended to retire at the end of the 41st Parliament.
| Party | Name | Electorate | Date announced |
| National | Rob Talbot | Ashburton | 29 January 1985 |
| National | Rex Austin | Awarua | 2 October 1985 |
| National | Neill Austin | Bay of Islands | 29 October 1986 |
| National | Jim McLay | Birkenhead | 4 August 1986 |
| National | Norman Jones | Invercargill | 23 March 1987 |
| National | Jack Luxton | Matamata | 5 February 1986 |
| Labour | Mary Batchelor | Avon | 19 June 1986 |
| Labour | Frank O'Flynn | Island Bay | 13 March 1986 |
| Labour | Ann Hercus | Lyttelton | 21 April 1987 |
| Labour | Eddie Isbey | Papatoetoe | 17 February 1987 |
| Labour | Fraser Colman | Pencarrow | 24 February 1987 |
| Labour | Gerry Wall | Porirua | 23 April 1987 |

## Electoral changes

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 (Clevedon, Maramarua, and Titirangi), three electorates were recreated (Albany, Coromandel, and Hobson), and four electorates were abolished (Franklin, Hauraki, Rodney, and Waitakere). All of those electorates were in the North Island. Changes in the South Island were restricted to boundary changes.

## Election day

The election was held on 15 August, and 2,114,656 people were registered to vote. Turnout was 89.1%, somewhat lower than the 1984 election.

## Summary of results

The election saw the Labour Party win 57 seats, enough for it to retain its outright majority. Labour held two more seats than after the previous election. The National Party won 40 seats, an increase of three. It was possible for both parties to increase their number of seats partly due to the disappearance of the Democrats and partly due to the increase in the total number of seats. This is the most recent election where only the two major parties, Labour and National won every seat in the House of Representatives.
Although Labour emerged from the election with a 17-seat lead over National, the difference between each party's vote count was considerably smaller. Labour's share of the vote was 48.0% (up from 43.0% in 1984), while National's was 44.0% (up from 35.5%). While Labour did retain its lead, the gap between Labour and National closed by a larger extent than the seat count would indicate.
The Democrats, despite winning 5.7% of the total vote, did not win any electorates, including the two that they had held before the election. The Democrats have not regained parliamentary representation under their own name since losing it in these elections, although they did manage to enter parliament as part of the larger Alliance in 1996.
The New Zealand Party, which had gained 12.2% of the vote in the previous election, performed poorly, gaining less than 0.3% support.

### Electoral petition

The election night result for Wairarapa was for National by 65 votes. The final official count later gave the seat to the incumbent, Reg Boorman of the Labour Party, by a margin of seven votes, but a judicial recount reduced that to only one vote. But on 12 July 1988, following a petition to the Electoral Court, Wyatt Creech of the National Party was declared elected by a margin of 34 votes (9,994 to 9,960). The petition was supported initially by MPs Roger McClay and Winston Peters (who had been involved in challenges in Taupo and Hunua) but not by the party hierarchy, according to Creech's account in a book by Ross Meurant).

## Detailed results
### Party totals

Election results :
| Party | Party | Candidates | Total votes | Percentage | Seats won | Change |
| | Labour | 97 | 878,448 | 47.96 | 57 | +1 |
| | National | 97 | 806,305 | 44.02 | 40 | +3 |
| | Democrats | 97 | 105,091 | 5.74 | 0 | −2 |
| | Mana Motuhake | 7 | 9,789 | 0.53 | 0 | – |
| | NZ Party | 32 | 5,381 | 0.29 | 0 | – |
| | McGillicuddy Serious | 19 | 2,990 | 0.16 | 0 | – |
| | Values | 9 | 1,624 | 0.08 | 0 | – |
| | Independents | 5 | 11,873 | 0.64 | 0 | – |
| | Others | 68 | 20,065 | 1.11 | 0 | – |
| Total | Total | 424 | 1,831,777 | | 97 | +2 |

### Votes summary

Popular Vote
Labour
47.96%
National
44.02%
Democrats
5.74%
Independents
0.64%
Others
1.64% :
Parliament seats
Labour
58.76%
National
41.24% :
There were 97 seats being contested, two more than were in the previous parliament. All seats were won by one of the two major parties.
The Labour Party, which was in government, won 57 seats, giving it a majority. Most of the seats won by Labour were in the poorest urban and largest inner-city areas, following the party's typical pattern. Labour was particularly strong in the Wellington region, where it won all ten urban seats. It was also strong in the Western and the Southern poorer areas of Auckland, Christchurch and Dunedin, the other three urban centres, as well as in smaller cities such as Hamilton, New Plymouth, Nelson, Napier, Hastings and Palmerston North. Labour also retained its traditional dominance in the Maori seats, winning all four by large margins.
The National Party, also following its traditional patterns, was strongest in rural areas, winning the vast majority of seats in these regions. The party's primary wins in the affluent urban areas of both the Northern and Eastern parts of Auckland, with the party taking six seats. The party also won a number of seats in smaller cities, such as Rotorua, Tauranga, Invercargill and Whangārei. The party performed poorly in the Maori electorates, coming third in all four.
While no minor parties managed to win an electorate, several did manage to gain second place, outperforming one of the major parties but being defeated by the other. The Democrats (formerly Social Credit) was the strongest of the minor parties, coming second in five electorates. Two electorates, East Coast Bays and Pakuranga, were held by the Democrats prior to the election, but were narrowly lost to National candidates. In the other electorates (Coromandel, Rangitikei and Wanganui) the Democrats were the challengers. In the four Maori electorates, the Mana Motuhake party gained second place. Its best result, 31.6%, was obtained in Northern Maori. The New Zealand Party also performed strongly in some electorates, although not as strongly as in the previous election.
Independent candidates did not perform well in the 1987 election, with none of them winning a seat or even placing second.
The tables below shows the results of the 1987 general election:
Key
Labour  National  Democrats  Mana Motuhake
Electorate results for the 1987 New Zealand general election :
| Electorate | Incumbent | Incumbent | Winner | Winner | Majority | Runner up |
| General electorates ||||||||
| Albany | New electorate | New electorate | | Don McKinnon | 1,658 | Chris Carter |
| Ashburton | | Rob Talbot | | Jenny Shipley | 4,935 | Ian Maxwell |
| Auckland Central | | Richard Prebble | Richard Prebble | Richard Prebble | 7,355 | Stephen Mayer |
| Avon | | Mary Batchelor | | Larry Sutherland | 6,322 | Wendy Rush |
| Awarua | | Rex Austin | | Jeff Grant | 2,480 | Heather Simpson |
| Bay of Islands | | Neill Austin | | John Carter | 2,123 | Chris Robertson |
| Birkenhead | | Jim McLay | | Jenny Kirk | 2,220 | Barry Gustafson |
| Christchurch Central | | Geoffrey Palmer | Geoffrey Palmer | Geoffrey Palmer | 6,805 | Graham Burnett |
| Christchurch North | | Mike Moore | Mike Moore | Mike Moore | 4,698 | Brendan McNeill |
| Clevedon | New electorate | New electorate | | Warren Kyd | 827 | Lee Goffin |
| Clutha | | Robin Gray | Robin Gray | Robin Gray | 5,541 | Holly Russell |
| Coromandel | New electorate | New electorate | | Graeme Lee | 3,765 | Alasdair Thompson |
| Dunedin North | | Stan Rodger | Stan Rodger | Stan Rodger | 6,534 | Sean Davison |
| Dunedin West | | Clive Matthewson | Clive Matthewson | Clive Matthewson | 4,547 | Ian McMeeking |
| East Cape | | Anne Fraser | Anne Fraser | Anne Fraser | 246 | Wira Gardiner |
| East Coast Bays | | Gary Knapp | | Murray McCully | 311 | Gary Knapp |
| Eastern Hutt | | Trevor Young | Trevor Young | Trevor Young | 4,740 | Penn Pattison |
| Eden | | Richard Northey | Richard Northey | Richard Northey | 3,404 | Hiwi Tauroa |
| Fendalton | | Philip Burdon | Philip Burdon | Philip Burdon | 311 | Neil Cherry |
| Gisborne | | Allan Wallbank | Allan Wallbank | Allan Wallbank | 2,759 | Georgina Tattersfield |
| Glenfield | | Judy Keall | Judy Keall | Judy Keall | 1,900 | David Schnauer |
| Hamilton East | | Bill Dillon | Bill Dillon | Bill Dillon | 1,671 | Sandra Shearer |
| Hamilton West | | Trevor Mallard | Trevor Mallard | Trevor Mallard | 1,235 | Doug Simes |
| Hastings | | David Butcher | David Butcher | David Butcher | 2,307 | Jeff Whittaker |
| Hawkes Bay | | Bill Sutton | Bill Sutton | Bill Sutton | 859 | Michael Laws |
| Heretaunga | | Bill Jeffries | Bill Jeffries | Bill Jeffries | 2,554 | John Allen |
| Hobson | New electorate | New electorate | | Ross Meurant | 4,998 | I J Melville |
| Horowhenua | | Annette King | Annette King | Annette King | 1,550 | Geoff Thompson |
| Invercargill | | Norman Jones | | Rob Munro | 552 | David Soper |
| Island Bay | | Frank O'Flynn | | Elizabeth Tennet | 7,313 | Sandra Clarke |
| Kaimai | | Bruce Townshend | | Robert Anderson | 2,307 | Henry Uttinger |
| Kaipara | | Lockwood Smith | Lockwood Smith | Lockwood Smith | 5,797 | Irene Hutchings |
| Kapiti | | Margaret Shields | Margaret Shields | Margaret Shields | 2,760 | Roger Sowry |
| King Country | | Jim Bolger | Jim Bolger | Jim Bolger | 5,954 | Leo Menefy |
| Lyttelton | | Ann Hercus | | Peter Simpson | 3,733 | Philip Hall |
| Manawatu | | Michael Cox | | David Robinson | 131 | Michael Cox |
| Mangere | | David Lange | David Lange | David Lange | 6,019 | Ron Jeffery |
| Manurewa | | Roger Douglas | Roger Douglas | Roger Douglas | 3,052 | George Cunningham |
| Maramarua | New electorate | New electorate | | Bill Birch | 5,729 | Brian Dent |
| Marlborough | | Doug Kidd | Doug Kidd | Doug Kidd | 2,402 | Barbara Hutchison |
| Matamata | | Jack Luxton | | John Luxton | 6,926 | D W McGregor |
| Miramar | | Peter Neilsen | Peter Neilsen | Peter Neilsen | 4,061 | Ian Macfarlane |
| Mount Albert | | Helen Clark | Helen Clark | Helen Clark | 5,337 | Rob Wheeler |
| Napier | | Geoff Braybrooke | Geoff Braybrooke | Geoff Braybrooke | 5,425 | Ashley Church |
| Nelson | | Philip Woollaston | Philip Woollaston | Philip Woollaston | 5,467 | Bob Straight |
| New Lynn | | Jonathan Hunt | Jonathan Hunt | Jonathan Hunt | 4,369 | Dick Berry |
| New Plymouth | | Tony Friedlander | | Harry Duynhoven | 337 | Tony Friedlander |
| North Shore | | George Gair | George Gair | George Gair | 920 | Graeme Ransom |
| Ohariu | | Peter Dunne | Peter Dunne | Peter Dunne | 4,492 | David Lloyd |
| Onehunga | | Fred Gerbic | Fred Gerbic | Fred Gerbic | 3,329 | Andrew Stanley |
| Otago | | Warren Cooper | Warren Cooper | Warren Cooper | 1,961 | Calvin Fisher |
| Otara | | Colin Moyle | Colin Moyle | Colin Moyle | 2,409 | Trevor Rogers |
| Pahiatua | | John Falloon | John Falloon | John Falloon | 2,083 | Margo Martindale |
| Pakuranga | | Neil Morrison | | Maurice Williamson | 2,018 | Neil Morrison |
| Palmerston North | | Trevor de Cleene | Trevor de Cleene | Trevor de Cleene | 3,237 | Paul Curry |
| Panmure | | Bob Tizard | Bob Tizard | Bob Tizard | 4,247 | T J C Elliott |
| Papakura | | Merv Wellington | Merv Wellington | Merv Wellington | 2,894 | Geoff Summers |
| Papatoetoe | | Eddie Isbey | | Ross Robertson | 2,689 | Howard Martin |
| Pencarrow | | Fraser Colman | | Sonja Davies | 1,851 | Andrew Harvey |
| Porirua | | Gerry Wall | | Graham Kelly | 3,531 | A L Gadsby |
| Raglan | | Simon Upton | Simon Upton | Simon Upton | 3,271 | Olivia Scarletti-Longley |
| Rangiora | | Jim Gerard | Jim Gerard | Jim Gerard | 2,132 | Chris Constable |
| Rangitikei | | Denis Marshall | Denis Marshall | Denis Marshall | 4,039 | Bruce Beetham |
| Remuera | | Doug Graham | Doug Graham | Doug Graham | 406 | Judith Tizard |
| Roskill | | Phil Goff | Phil Goff | Phil Goff | 2,437 | Bob Foulkes |
| Rotorua | | Paul East | Paul East | Paul East | 2,425 | Rosemary Michie |
| St Albans | | David Caygill | David Caygill | David Caygill | 4,521 | Andrew Cowie |
| St Kilda | | Michael Cullen | Michael Cullen | Michael Cullen | 5,692 | Lyndon Weggery |
| Selwyn | | Ruth Richardson | Ruth Richardson | Ruth Richardson | 2,962 | Bill Woods |
| Sydenham | | Jim Anderton | Jim Anderton | Jim Anderton | 6,436 | Judith Harrington |
| Tamaki | | Robert Muldoon | Robert Muldoon | Robert Muldoon | 1,947 | Carl Harding |
| Taranaki | | Roger Maxwell | Roger Maxwell | Roger Maxwell | 6,313 | Patrick Jackson |
| Tarawera | | Ian McLean | Ian McLean | Ian McLean | 3,577 | Malcolm Moore |
| Tasman | | Ken Shirley | Ken Shirley | Ken Shirley | 1,012 | Gerald Hunt |
| Tauranga | | Winston Peters | Winston Peters | Winston Peters | 2,451 | Jenny Seddon |
| Te Atatu | | Michael Bassett | Michael Bassett | Michael Bassett | 2,249 | Brian Neeson |
| Timaru | | Maurice McTigue | Maurice McTigue | Maurice McTigue | 857 | Gary Clarke |
| Titirangi | New electorate | New electorate | | Ralph Maxwell | 3,954 | John McIntosh |
| Tongariro | | Noel Scott | Noel Scott | Noel Scott | 2,370 | Ian Peters |
| Waikaremoana | | Roger McClay | Roger McClay | Roger McClay | 3,810 | T K Stewart |
| Waikato | | Rob Storey | Rob Storey | Rob Storey | 4,155 | Bruce Raitt |
| Waipa | | Katherine O'Regan | Katherine O'Regan | Katherine O'Regan | 6,303 | L F Holmes |
| Wairarapa | | Reg Boorman | | Wyatt Creech | 34 | Reg Boorman |
| Waitaki | | Jim Sutton | Jim Sutton | Jim Sutton | 89 | Duncan Taylor |
| Waitotara | | Venn Young | Venn Young | Venn Young | 5,949 | Rachel Stewart |
| Wallace | | Derek Angus | Derek Angus | Derek Angus | 7,594 | Barry Julian |
| Wanganui | | Russell Marshall | Russell Marshall | Russell Marshall | 248 | Terry Heffernan |
| Wellington Central | | Fran Wilde | Fran Wilde | Fran Wilde | 5,191 | John Feast |
| West Auckland | | Jack Elder | Jack Elder | Jack Elder | 2,844 | Ben Couch |
| West Coast | | Kerry Burke | Kerry Burke | Kerry Burke | 1,480 | Gordon Garwood |
| Western Hutt | | John Terris | John Terris | John Terris | 3,548 | Joy McLauchlan |
| Whangārei | | John Banks | John Banks | John Banks | 3,687 | Edna Tait |
| Yaldhurst | | Margaret Austin | Margaret Austin | Margaret Austin | 2,542 | James Bacon |
| Māori electorates ||||||||
| Eastern Maori | | Peter Tapsell | Peter Tapsell | Peter Tapsell | 8,696 | Amster Reedy |
| Northern Maori | | Bruce Gregory | Bruce Gregory | Bruce Gregory | 3,529 | Matiu Rata |
| Southern Maori | | Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan | Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan | Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan | 8,848 | Tikirau Stevens |
| Western Maori | | Koro Wētere | Koro Wētere | Koro Wētere | 8,129 | Eva Rickard |
Table footnotes:
* ↑ Cox was first on election night for Manawatu, but lost when special votes were included
* ↑ Jim Anderton defected to New Labour in 1989.
* ↑ Creech was declared elected by the High Court after an Electoral Petition