Oroua was a parliamentary electorate in the

Manawatū-Whanganui Manawatū-Whanganui (; spelled Manawatu-Wanganui prior to 2019) is a region in the lower half of the North Island of New Zealand, whose main population centres are the cities of Palmerston North and Whanganui. It is administered by the Manawat ...

region of New Zealand from 1902 to 1938.

Population centres

The Representation Act 1900 had increased the membership of the House of Representatives from general electorates 70 to 76, and this was implemented through the 1902 electoral redistribution. In 1902, changes to the country quota affected the three-member electorates in the four main centres. The tolerance between electorates was increased to ±1,250 so that the Representation Commissions (since 1896, there had been separate commissions for the North and

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 ...

s) could take greater account of communities of interest. These changes proved very disruptive to existing boundaries, and six electorates were established for the first time, including Oroua, and two electorates that previously existed were re-established. In the , polling booths were in Feilding, Halcombe, Kimbolton,

Ruahine The Ruahine Range is the largest of several mountain ranges in the North Island of New Zealand that form a ridge running parallel with the east coast of the island between East Cape and Wellington. The ridge is at its most pronounced from the cen ...

Pohangina Pohangina is a small rural community in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand, just north of Ashhurst. Pohangina is located along the foot of the Ruahine Range, and is primarily farming land. Farming varies from sheep and cattle to cro ...

, Ashhurst, and other places. In the 1907 electoral redistribution, a major change that had to be allowed for was a reduction of the tolerance to ±750 to those electorates where the country quota applied. 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 ...

had once again a higher population growth than the

, and three seats were transferred from south to north. In the resulting boundary distribution, every existing electorate was affected, and some were abolished, including the Oroua electorate. These changes took effect with the .

History

The electorate was first created for the 1902 election. Frank Lethbridge won the 1902 election against Arthur Henry Tompkins. Lethbridge had since the represented the Rangitikei electorate. When he retired in , David Guthrie became the next representative. Guthrie joined the Reform Party when it formed in 1909 and held the Oroua electorate until he retired in 1925. John Gordon Eliott of the Reform Party succeeded Guthrie in the and represented Oroua for one parliamentary term, as he was defeated by John Cobbe of the United Party in the . Cobbe became part of the National Party when the United and Reform Parties amalgamated in 1936. Cobbe held the electorate until it was abolished in 1938, and then continued to represent the electorate.

Election results

The electorate was represented by four Members of Parliament: Key

Election results

1935 election

1928 election

Notes

References

* * {{Historic electorates of New Zealand , state=collapsed Historical electorates of New Zealand Politics of Manawatū-Whanganui 1902 establishments in New Zealand 1938 disestablishments in New Zealand