Westland Boroughs 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 or con ...

in the West Coast of New Zealand from 1866 to 1870.

Population centres

Westland Boroughs was made up of the areas covered by the

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle ...

s of

Greymouth Greymouth () ( Māori: ''Māwhera'') is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coas ...

and

Hokitika Hokitika is a town in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island, south of Greymouth, and close to the mouth of the Hokitika River. It is the seat and largest town in the Westland District. The town's estimated population is as of ...

. The enabling legislation allowed for further boroughs to be added as needed, but this did not happen.

History

The Westland Representation Act 1867 introduced changes to the Waimea and

Westland Westland or Westlands may refer to: Places *Westlands, an affluent neighbourhood in the city of Nairobi, Kenya * Westlands, Staffordshire, a suburban area and ward in Newcastle-under-Lyme *Westland, a peninsula of the Shetland Mainland near Vaila ...

electorates. Their areas were reassigned and four electorates formed. Waimea lost some area, but continued to exist as a landlocked electorate. Westland was abolished in 1867. A new electorate (Westland Boroughs) was established, and the Act stipulated that the sitting member (

William Sefton Moorhouse William Sefton Moorhouse ( 1825 – 15 September 1881) was a British-born New Zealand politician. He was the second Superintendent of Canterbury Province. Early life Moorhouse was born in Yorkshire, England, and baptised on 18 December 1825; th ...

) was transferred to it. Other new electorates, for which by-elections were to be held, were

Westland North Westland North was a parliamentary electorate on the West Coast of New Zealand from 1868 to 1870. History The Westland Representation Act 1867 introduced changes to the Waimea and Westland electorates. Their areas were reassigned and four ele ...

and

Westland South Westland South was a parliamentary electorate on the West Coast of New Zealand from 1868 to 1870. History The Westland Representation Act 1867 introduced changes to the Waimea and Westland electorates. Their areas were reassigned and four el ...

. Hence, Moorhouse was the first representative, and he had been elected for the Westland electorate in the 1866 general election. Moorhouse resigned on 20 February 1868, and

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

won the resulting

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election ( Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election use ...

. Harrison served until the end of the term in 1870, when the electorate was abolished.

Members of Parliament

Westland Boroughs was represented by two Members of Parliament:

Election results

1868 by-election

Notes

References

* * {{Historic electorates of New Zealand , state=collapsed Historical electorates of New Zealand Politics of the West Coast, New Zealand