Hawera was a parliamentary

electorate Electorate may refer to: * The people who are eligible to vote in an election, especially their number e.g. the term ''size of (the) electorate'' * The dominion of a Prince-elector in the Holy Roman Empire until 1806 * An electoral district An ...

in the South Taranaki District of New Zealand from 1896 to 1908. It was represented by two Members of Parliament over the four parliamentary terms of its existence.

Population centres

In the 1896 electoral redistribution, rapid population growth in the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

required the transfer of three seats from the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

to the north. Four electorates that previously existed were re-established, and three electorates were established for the first time, including Hawera. The electorate was abolished, the electorate shifted north, and the electorate shifted east. This made room for the and Hawera electorates. Settlements in the original Hawera electorate were the towns of

Hāwera Hāwera is the second-largest centre in the Taranaki region of New Zealand's North Island, with a population of . It is near the coast of the South Taranaki Bight. The origins of the town lie in a government military base that was established i ...

, Manaia, and Eltham. In the 1902 electoral redistribution, Eltham was lost to the Patea electorate, but

Ōpunake Ōpunake is a small town on the southwest coast of Taranaki in New Zealand's North Island. It is located 45 kilometres southwest of New Plymouth. Rahotu is 16 km to the northwest. Manaia is 29 km to the southeast. State Highway ...

was gained from the Taranaki electorate. In the 1907 electoral redistribution, the Hawera electorate was abolished, and its area was distributed to the Patea and Egmont electorates.

History

Felix McGuire Felix McGuire (1847 – 6 April 1915) was an independent conservative Member of Parliament in New Zealand. McGuire unsuccessfully contested the electorate in the and . He was elected to the Egmont electorate in a 1891 by-election afte ...

was the electorate's first representative. As an independent conservative, he had previously represented the Egmont electorate since a 1891 by-election after the resignation of Harry Atkinson. In the , McGuire was defeated by

Charles E. Major Charles Edwin Major (1859 – 1 June 1954) was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal Party, from Taranaki. He was a Member of Parliament for Hawera in the 15th and 16th parliaments, from 1902 to 1908, having failed to win election in 18 ...

of the Liberal Party. McGuire and Major once again contested the Hawera electorate in

1905 As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia (Shostakovich's 11th Symphony i ...

, and Major remained successful. The Hawera electorate was abolished at the . Major stood in the Patea electorate, but was defeated by the conservative politician George Pearce.

Members of Parliament

The Hawera electorate was represented by two Members of Parliament: Key

Election results

1905 election

1902 election

1899 election

1896 election

Notes

References

* * {{Historic electorates of New Zealand , state=collapsed Historical electorates of New Zealand South Taranaki District 1896 establishments in New Zealand 1908 disestablishments in New Zealand Hāwera Politics of Taranaki