# 24th New Zealand Parliament

The 24th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the New Zealand Parliament. It opened on 23 February 1932, following the 1931 election. It was dissolved on 1 November 1935 in preparation for the 1935 election. The 24th Parliament was extended by one year because the 1935 election was held later than anticipated due to the ongoing depression, similarly the 1919, and the 1943 elections were held two years late, having been postponed during World War I and World War II respectively.
The Prime Minister during the 24th Parliament was George Forbes, leader of the United Party. Many commentators at the time, however, alleged that Gordon Coates, leader of the larger Reform Party, had the greater influence.
The 24th Parliament consisted of eighty representatives, each elected from separate geographical electorates.

## Ministries

The 24th Parliament was led by a coalition of the Reform Party and the United Party; Reform had twenty-eight seats, United had nineteen, and there were four pro-coalition independents. The primary opposition was from the Labour Party, which had twenty-four seats. The small Country Party had one seat, and there were four non-aligned independents. The distribution of seats between three large parties (also a feature of the previous parliament) was relatively unusual, as New Zealand tended towards a two-party system at the time.
The coalition government had been formed on 22 September 1931 during the term of the previous Parliament. During the difficult times of the Great Depression, Forbes had wanted to form a grand coalition with the Labour Party and the Reform Party. Labour refused, but Reform went into a coalition government with United from September 1931.

## Party standings
### Start of Parliament

| Party | Leader(s) | Seats at start |
| Reform Party | Gordon Coates | 28 |
| Labour Party | Harry Holland | 24 |
| United Party | George Forbes | 19 |
| Country Party | Harold Rushworth | 1 |
| Independents | Independents | 8 |

### End of Parliament

| Party | Leader(s) | Seats at end |
| Reform Party | Gordon Coates | 29 |
| Labour Party | Michael Joseph Savage | 24 |
| United Party | George Forbes | 16 |
| Democrat Party | Thomas Hislop (outside parliament) | 2 |
| Country Party | Harold Rushworth | 1 |
| Ratana | Eruera Tirikatene | 1 |
| Independents | Independents | 7 |

## Members
### Initial MPs

The following table shows the detailed results:
Key
Reform  Labour  United  Country Party  Independent Liberal  Ratana  Independent
Electorate results for the 1931 New Zealand general election :
| Electorate | Incumbent | Winner | Winner | Majority | Runner up | Runner up |
| General electorates ||||||||
| Auckland Central | Bill Parry | Bill Parry | Bill Parry | 3,793 | | Harold Penfound Congdon |
| Auckland East | James Donald | | Bill Schramm | 2,256 | | Harold Percy Burton |
| Auckland Suburbs | Rex Mason | Rex Mason | Rex Mason | 1,223 | | Richard Herbert Marryatt |
| Auckland West | Michael Joseph Savage | Michael Joseph Savage | Michael Joseph Savage | 4,517 | | Hugh Ross Mackenzie |
| Avon | Dan Sullivan | Dan Sullivan | Dan Sullivan | 3,039 | | Harben Robert Young |
| Awarua | Philip De La Perrelle | Philip De La Perrelle | Philip De La Perrelle | 2,148 | | Norman McIntyre |
| Bay of Islands | Harold Rushworth | Harold Rushworth | Harold Rushworth | 1,209 | | Allen Bell |
| Bay of Plenty | Kenneth Williams | Kenneth Williams | Kenneth Williams | Uncontested | Uncontested | Uncontested |
| Buller | Harry Holland | Harry Holland | Harry Holland | 3,631 | | John Menzies |
| Central Otago | William Bodkin | William Bodkin | William Bodkin | 2,516 | | Charles Todd |
| Chalmers | Alfred Ansell | Alfred Ansell | Alfred Ansell | 172 | | Norman Hartley Campbell |
| Christchurch East | Tim Armstrong | Tim Armstrong | Tim Armstrong | 3,206 | | George Frederick Allen |
| Christchurch North | Henry Holland | Henry Holland | Henry Holland | 2,077 | | Elizabeth McCombs |
| Christchurch South | Ted Howard | Ted Howard | Ted Howard | 2,798 | | Charlie McCully |
| Clutha | Fred Waite | | Peter McSkimming | 1,530 | | Fred Waite |
| Dunedin Central | Charles Statham | Charles Statham | Charles Statham | 262 | | Peter Neilson |
| Dunedin North | Jim Munro | Jim Munro | Jim Munro | 524 | | John McCrae |
| Dunedin South | William Taverner | | Fred Jones | 3,644 | | William Taverner |
| Dunedin West | William Downie Stewart Jr | William Downie Stewart Jr | William Downie Stewart Jr | 924 | | John Gilchrist |
| Eden | Arthur Stallworthy | Arthur Stallworthy | Arthur Stallworthy | 1,270 | | Bill Anderton |
| Egmont | Charles Wilkinson | Charles Wilkinson | Charles Wilkinson | 1,308 | | F. Gawith |
| Franklin | Jack Massey | Jack Massey | Jack Massey | 2,457 | | Harry Oswald Mellsop |
| Gisborne | Douglas Lysnar | | David Coleman | 317 | | Douglas Lysnar |
| Grey Lynn | John Fletcher | | John A. Lee | 3,242 | | John Fletcher |
| Hamilton | Alexander Young | Alexander Young | Alexander Young | 3,072 | | Hubert Beebe |
| Hauraki | Walter William Massey | Walter William Massey | Walter William Massey | 2,750 | | Charles Robert Petrie |
| Hawke's Bay | Hugh Campbell | Hugh Campbell | Hugh Campbell | 2,259 | | Ted Cullen |
| Hurunui | George Forbes | George Forbes | George Forbes | 3,953 | | R. J. Logan |
| Hutt | Walter Nash | Walter Nash | Walter Nash | 2,823 | | James Kerr |
| Invercargill | Vincent Ward | | James Hargest | 508 | | William McChesney |
| Kaiapoi | Richard Hawke | Richard Hawke | Richard Hawke | 1,414 | | John Archer |
| Kaipara | Gordon Coates | Gordon Coates | Gordon Coates | 2,084 | | Albert Edward Robinson |
| Lyttelton | James McCombs | James McCombs | James McCombs | 32 | | Frederick Willie Freeman |
| Manawatu | Joseph Linklater | Joseph Linklater | Joseph Linklater | 2,246 | | Lorrie Hunter |
| Manukau | Bill Jordan | Bill Jordan | Bill Jordan | 3,394 | | Stanley Rickards |
| Marsden | Alfred Murdoch | Alfred Murdoch | Alfred Murdoch | 2,942 | | Jim Barclay |
| Masterton | George Sykes | George Sykes | George Sykes | 1,951 | | Peter Butler |
| Mataura | David McDougall | David McDougall | David McDougall | 943 | | Thomas Golden |
| Mid-Canterbury | David Jones | | Jeremiah Connolly | 136 | | David Jones |
| Motueka | George Black | George Black | George Black | 517 | | Keith Holyoake |
| Napier | Bill Barnard | Bill Barnard | Bill Barnard | 1,456 | | John Butler |
| Nelson | Harry Atmore | Harry Atmore | Harry Atmore | 100 | | Herbert Everett |
| New Plymouth | Sydney George Smith | Sydney George Smith | Sydney George Smith | 3,472 | | William Sheat |
| Oamaru | John Andrew MacPherson | John Andrew MacPherson | John Andrew MacPherson | 1,046 | | John Kirkness |
| Oroua | John Cobbe | John Cobbe | John Cobbe | Uncontested | Uncontested | Uncontested |
| Otaki | William Hughes Field | William Hughes Field | William Hughes Field | 1,321 | | Jim Thorn |
| Pahiatua | Alfred Ransom | Alfred Ransom | Alfred Ransom | Uncontested | Uncontested | Uncontested |
| Palmerston | Jimmy Nash | Jimmy Nash | Jimmy Nash | 1,245 | | Joe Hodgens |
| Parnell | Bill Endean | Bill Endean | Bill Endean | 4,821 | | John William Yarnall |
| Patea | Harold Dickie | Harold Dickie | Harold Dickie | 3,495 | | W. G. Simpson |
| Raglan | Lee Martin | | Stewart Reid | 806 | | Lee Martin |
| Rangitikei | James Thomas Hogan | | Alexander Stuart | 15 | | James Thomas Hogan |
| Riccarton | Bert Kyle | Bert Kyle | Bert Kyle | 589 | | Archibald Albany McLachlan |
| Roskill | George Munns | | Arthur Shapton Richards | 171 | | William John Holdsworth |
| Rotorua | Cecil Clinkard | Cecil Clinkard | Cecil Clinkard | 57 | | Alexander Moncur |
| Stratford | William Polson | William Polson | William Polson | 1,518 | | J W McMillan |
| Tauranga | Charles Macmillan | Charles Macmillan | Charles Macmillan | 658 | | Bill Sullivan |
| Temuka | Thomas Burnett | Thomas Burnett | Thomas Burnett | 1,237 | | Thomas Herbert Langford |
| Thames | Albert Samuel | Albert Samuel | Albert Samuel | 464 | | John Sommerville Montgomerie |
| Timaru | Clyde Carr | Clyde Carr | Clyde Carr | 820 | | Herbert N. Armstrong |
| Waikato | Frederick Lye | Frederick Lye | Frederick Lye | 981 | | Solomon Netheim Ziman |
| Waimarino | Frank Langstone | Frank Langstone | Frank Langstone | 591 | | William Henry Wackrow |
| Waipawa | Albert Jull | Albert Jull | Albert Jull | 386 | | John Davies Ormond, Jr. |
| Wairarapa | Thomas McDonald | | Alex McLeod | 616 | | Thomas McDonald |
| Wairau | Edward Healy | Edward Healy | Edward Healy | 1,424 | | William Girling |
| Waitaki | John Bitchener | John Bitchener | John Bitchener | 885 | | Alexander McLean Paterson |
| Waitemata | Alexander Harris | Alexander Harris | Alexander Harris | 2,378 | | Arthur Osborne |
| Waitomo | Walter Broadfoot | Walter Broadfoot | Walter Broadfoot | Uncontested | Uncontested | Uncontested |
| Wallace | Adam Hamilton | Adam Hamilton | Adam Hamilton | 2,842 | | Peter Gilfedder |
| Wanganui | Bill Veitch | Bill Veitch | Bill Veitch | 590 | | Bill Rogers |
| Wellington Central | Peter Fraser | Peter Fraser | Peter Fraser | 2,471 | | Robert Darroch |
| Wellington East | Bob Semple | Bob Semple | Bob Semple | 593 | | Thomas Forsyth |
| Wellington North | Charles Chapman | Charles Chapman | Charles Chapman | 1,061 | | George Troup |
| Wellington South | Robert McKeen | Robert McKeen | Robert McKeen | 2,659 | | Will Appleton |
| Wellington Suburbs | Robert Wright | Robert Wright | Robert Wright | 2,570 | | Tom Brindle |
| Westland | James O'Brien | James O'Brien | James O'Brien | 1,121 | | John Greenslade |
| Māori electorates ||||||||
| Eastern Maori | Āpirana Ngata | Āpirana Ngata | Āpirana Ngata | 3,211 | | Pita Moko |
| Northern Maori | Taurekareka Henare | Taurekareka Henare | Taurekareka Henare | 1,188 | | Paraire Karaka Paikea |
| Southern Maori | Tuiti Makitanara | Tuiti Makitanara | Tuiti Makitanara | 19 | | Eruera Tirikatene |
| Western Maori | Taite Te Tomo | Taite Te Tomo | Taite Te Tomo | 1,436 | | Toko Ratana |
Table footnotes:
* ↑ For some biographical details of James Kerr refer to his father's article
* ↑ For some biographical details of McLachlan refer to his grandfather's article
* ↑ McMillan claimed to stand for the Reform Party, but he was not the official candidate, as the United–Reform Coalition endorsed William Polson, who ran as an Independent
* ↑ Bill Sullivan was a member of the United Party, but Charles Macmillan was the official candidate of the United–Reform Coalition, hence Sullivan stood as an Independent
* ↑ The Reform and United parties could not agree on an official coalition candidate for the Timaru electorate, so neither Armstrong (Reform) nor Herbert Hall (United) were official candidates, and many sources show them as Independents
* ↑ Ziman was the father of John Ziman
* ↑ Jull was the official candidate of the United–Reform Coalition
* ↑ Ormond was the son of John Davies Ormond and the father of John Ormond
* Four of the eight independent MPs (Connolly, Hargest, McSkimming, and Polson) were aligned with the United–Reform Coalition, and are not classified as independents by some sources.

## By-elections during 24th Parliament

There were a number of changes during the term of the 24th Parliament.
| Electorate and by-election | Electorate and by-election | Date | Incumbent | Cause | Winner |
| Southern Maori | 1932 | 3 August | Tuiti Makitanara | Death | Eruera Tirikatene |
| Motueka | 1932 | 1 December | George Black | Death | Keith Holyoake |
| Lyttelton | 1933 | 13 September | James McCombs | Death | Elizabeth McCombs |
| Buller | 1933 | 22 November | Harry Holland | Death | Paddy Webb |
| Lyttelton | 1935 | 24 July | Elizabeth McCombs | Death | Terry McCombs |

### Summary of changes

* Tuiti Makitanara, the United MP for Southern Maori, died on 26 June 1932. The resulting 1932 by-election was won by Eruera Tirikatene, an independent candidate associated with the Rātana religious movement.
* George Black, the independent MP for Motueka, died on 7 October 1932. The resulting 1932 by-election was won by Keith Holyoake of the Reform Party.
* James McCombs, the Labour MP for Lyttelton, died on 2 August 1933. The resulting 1933 by-election Labour victory by his wife, Elizabeth McCombs, made her the first woman to win election to the New Zealand Parliament.
* Harry Holland, leader of the Labour Party and MP for Buller, died on 8 October 1933. The resulting 1933 by-election was won by Paddy Webb, also of the Labour Party.
* Elizabeth McCombs died on 7 June 1935, twenty-two months after her husband's death, and the resulting 1935 by-election returned her son, Terry McCombs.