page_title: Republicanism in New Zealand
section_title: 20th century
hierarchical_section_title: Republicanism in New Zealand / History / 20th century
caption_attribution_description: English: Jim Bolger at a press conference. Cropped version of Image:Jim Bolger at press conference.jpg
context_page_description: Republicanism in New Zealand is a political position that holds that New Zealand's system of government should be changed from a constitutional monarchy to a republic.
  New Zealand republicanism dates back to the 19th century, although until the late 20th century it was a fringe movement. The current main republican lobby group, New Zealand Republic, was established in 1994. Because New Zealand's constitution is uncodified, a republic could be enacted by statute, as a simple act of parliament. However, it is generally assumed that this would only occur following a nationwide referendum. Several prime ministers and governors-general have identified themselves as republicans, although no government has yet taken any meaningful steps towards enacting a republic. Public opinion polls have generally found that a majority of the population favour retaining the monarchy.
context_section_description: In the 1911 general election Colonel Allen Bell, the Reform Party candidate for the Raglan seat, advocated the abolition of the monarchy. The armed forces considered that Bell had broken his Oath of Allegiance. He was asked to resign his commission, which he did in January 1912.
  In 1966 Bruce Jesson founded the Republican Association of New Zealand, and later the Republican Party in 1967. The party had a stridently nationalist platform. Republican Party activity petered out after the 1969 general election and the party wound up in 1974.
  In May 1973, a remit was proposed at the Labour Party national conference to change the flag, declare New Zealand a republic, and change the national anthem (then only "God Save the Queen"), but this was voted down.
  In March 1994 the Republican Coalition of New Zealand was formed to promote the move to a republic. The following year, the Monarchist League of New Zealand (now Monarchy New Zealand) was established to defend the constitutional monarchy.
  In 1994 Prime Minister Jim Bolger suggested to the 44th Parliament in the Address In Reply debate that New Zealand should move to become a republic by 2001. Bolger stated that New Zealand's links with Britain were in decline, and that the country should acknowledge that "the tide of history is moving in one direction." He denied that his views relate to his Irish heritage. 
  Bolger spoke to Queen Elizabeth about the issue of New Zealand becoming a republic when he was prime minister and recalled "I have more than once spoken with Her Majesty about my view that New Zealand would at some point elect its own Head of State, we discussed the matter in a most sensible way and she was in no way surprised or alarmed and neither did she cut my head off."
  In 1998, Richard Nottage, the Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade, called for New Zealand to consider becoming a republic, arguing that the position of the "British monarch"  [sic] as head of state "looks strange in Asian eyes".
  In 1999 the Republican Coalition relaunched itself as the Republican Movement of Aotearoa New Zealand, similar to the Australian Republican Movement, due to the 1999 Australian republic referendum, and again renamed itself in 2014 as New Zealand Republic.
caption: Jim Bolger, Prime Minister 1990–1997 and leader of the National Party, raised the republic issue in 1994.
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