49th New Zealand Parliament
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The 49th New Zealand Parliament was elected at the
2008 election This electoral calendar 2008 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2008 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, even though they are not elections. By-elections are no ...
. It comprised 122 members, including an overhang of two seats (an increase of one from the 48th Parliament) caused by the Māori Party having won two more electorate seats than its share of the party vote would otherwise have given it. The Parliament served from 2008 until the November . New Zealand uses the
mixed-member proportional Mixed-member proportional representation (MMP or MMPR) is a mixed electoral system in which votes cast are considered in local elections and also to determine overall party vote tallies, which are used to allocate additional members to produce ...
(MMP) system to elect its parliaments. Seventy of the members of the 49th Parliament represented geographical electorates: sixteen in 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 ...
, 47 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 ...
(one more than for the 48th Parliament) and seven Māori electorates. The remaining 52 (increased from fifty by the overhang) were elected from nationwide party vote candidate lists to realise proportionality. There were 10 resignations leading to Electoral Commission replacement selections for new list candidates from four parliamentary parties. Lockwood Smith was the Speaker in the 49th Parliament.


Electorate boundaries for 49th Parliament

The Representation Commission altered many of the boundaries of New Zealand's parliamentary electorates following the
2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...
; the large growth in population between censuses lead to significant boundary changes, particularly in Auckland, the area around Christchurch and the central North Island. In May 2007, the Representation Commission announced the boundary changes to take effect for the next general election, with the boundaries finalised in September 2007. The Commission announced the formation of a new electorate in Greater Auckland, bringing the number of geographical constituencies to 70. The new electorate, originally dubbed "
Howick Howick may refer to: Places *Howick, KwaZulu-Natal, in South Africa **Howick Falls * Howick, Lancashire, a small hamlet (Howick Cross) and former civil parish in England *Howick, New Zealand **Howick Historical Village **Howick (New Zealand electo ...
" (after the Auckland suburb), would have included parts of the existing Pakuranga, Manukau East and Clevedon electorates. After Pakuranga electors strongly objected to the proposed changes (which would have seen the inclusion of the population centres Panmure,
Point England Point England is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is under the local governance of the Auckland Council. Demographics Point England covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. Point ...
and Glen Innes into the electorate) the Commission largely reverted proposed changes to the boundaries of the Pakuranga electorate. The Commission opted to alleviate population pressures by moving the Auckland City suburb of Otahuhu into
Manukau East Manukau East was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate that returned one member of parliament to the House of Representatives. It was first formed for the . Between the and the 2020 electorate adjustment it was held by Jenny Salesa, a member ...
. The revised new electorate received the name Botany to reflect its focus on the growing population-centres of
Botany Downs Botany Downs is an eastern suburb of the city of Auckland, New Zealand. This residential area previously formed part of the East Tāmaki area. In terms of local-body administration, the suburb lies in the Howick ward, one of the thirteen adm ...
Dannemora. On paper, Botany counts as a safe National seat. Even though the number of South Island electorates remains fixed, the decline in the population of electorates south of Christchurch resulted in the boundaries of electorates from Invercargill north to Rakaia shifting northwards. The electorates of Aoraki,
Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...
, Rakaia and
Banks Peninsula Banks Peninsula is a peninsula of volcanic origin on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It has an area of approximately and encompasses two large harbours and many smaller bays and coves. The South Island's largest cit ...
all gravitated towards Christchurch. In the process: * Aoraki received the new name of *
Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...
received the new name of
Waitaki Waitaki District is a territorial authority district that is located in the Canterbury and Otago regions of the South Island of New Zealand. It straddles the traditional border between the two regions, the Waitaki River, and its seat is Oamaru. ...
* Rakaia received the new name of Selwyn *
Banks Peninsula Banks Peninsula is a peninsula of volcanic origin on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It has an area of approximately and encompasses two large harbours and many smaller bays and coves. The South Island's largest cit ...
received the new name of Port Hills Other electorates in the lower South Island increased substantially in size.


2008 election results

The figures below are based on official results A decrease of 7 MPs is shown for "Other Parties" because the
New Zealand First New Zealand First ( mi, Aotearoa Tuatahi), commonly abbreviated to NZ First, is a nationalist and populist political party in New Zealand. The party formed in July 1993 following the resignation on 19 March 1993 of its leader and founder, Winst ...
party of Winston Peters did not win an electorate seat or 5% of the party vote, and hence was not allocated any seats in the new Parliament.


Members of the 49th New Zealand Parliament


New Zealand National Party The New Zealand National Party ( mi, Rōpū Nāhinara o Aotearoa), shortened to National () or the Nats, is a centre-right political party in New Zealand. It is one of two major parties that dominate contemporary New Zealand politics, alongside ...
(58)


New Zealand Labour Party The New Zealand Labour Party ( mi, Rōpū Reipa o Aotearoa), or simply Labour (), is a centre-left political party in New Zealand. The party's platform programme describes its founding principle as democratic socialism, while observers descr ...
(42)


Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand (9)


ACT New Zealand (5)


Māori Party (4)


United Future New Zealand (1)


Jim Anderton's Progressive Party (1)


Mana Party The Mana Movement, formerly known as the Mana Party, is a former political party in New Zealand. The party was led by Hone Harawira who formed it in April 2011 following his resignation from the Māori Party. Harawira won the by-election in Te T ...
(1)


Independent (1)


By-elections during 49th Parliament

There were a number of changes during the term of the 49th Parliament.


Summary of changes during term

* Helen Clark resigned in April 2009 to take up a position as Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme. The resulting Mount Albert by-election was won by
David Shearer David James Shearer (born 28 July 1957) is a New Zealand United Nations worker and politician. He was a member of the New Zealand Parliament for the Labour Party from 2009 to 2016, serving as Leader of the Opposition from 2011 to 2013. Shear ...
on 13 June 2009. * Michael Cullen resigned in April 2009 to become the deputy chairman of New Zealand Post. He was replaced by the next person on the Labour Party's list,
Damien O'Connor Damien Peter O'Connor (born 16 January 1958) is a New Zealand Labour Party politician who currently serves as Minister of Agriculture, Minister for Biosecurity, Minister for Trade and Export Growth, Minister for Land Information and Minister ...
. *
Richard Worth Richard Westwood Worth (3 July 1948 – 10 May 2022) was a New Zealand politician of the New Zealand National Party. He was the Member of Parliament for Epsom from 1999 to 2005 and a list MP from 2005 to 2009. Prior to entering Parliament, W ...
resigned in June 2009. He was replaced by the next person on the National Party's list, Cam Calder. * Sue Bradford resigned in October 2009. She was replaced by the next person on the Green Party's list,
David Clendon David James Clendon (born 11 September 1955) is a New Zealand politician and former member of the Green Party. Following the resignation of Sue Bradford, Clendon became a member of the House of Representatives on 2 November 2009. Personal life ...
. * Jeanette Fitzsimons resigned in February 2010. She was replaced by the next person on the Green Party's list, Gareth Hughes. * Chris Carter expelled from Labour Party caucus amidst expenses scandal in 2010 and, as of October 2010, was expelled from the Labour Party meaning his seat is one as solely an Independent MP. *
David Garrett David Christian Bongartz (born 4 September 1980), known by his stage name David Garrett, is a German classical and crossover violinist and recording artist. Early life When Garrett was four years old his father purchased a violin for his ol ...
resigned from the ACT caucus in September 2010 and resigned from Parliament shortly after being replaced by
Hilary Calvert Hilary Jane Calvert (born 5 October 1954) is a lawyer and a former member of the New Zealand parliament for the ACT Party. Following the resignation of ACT MP David Garrett in September 2010, she assumed a position in the House of Representative ...
. *Luamanuvao
Winnie Laban Luamanuvao Dame Winifred Alexandra Laban (born 14 August 1955) is a former New Zealand politician. She served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Mana (New Zealand electorate), Mana electorate, representing the New Zealand Labour Party, L ...
resigned in October 2010 to become Assistant Vice-Chancellor (Pasifika) at Victoria University of Wellington. The resulting Mana by-election was won by Kris Faafoi. * Pansy Wong resigned in January 2011 following questions and a Speaker's investigation into her use of Ministerial travel privileges. Her portfolios were transferred to Hekia Parata who was raised to Cabinet to replace her. The resulting Botany by-election was won by Jami-Lee Ross. * Hone Harawira resigned from the Māori Party in February 2011 following a recommendation by the party's Disciplinary and Disputes Committee that the party's National Council expel him. He resigned from Parliament as an Independent MP effective 21 May causing a by-election in Te Tai Tokerau. Harawira announced his intention to run as a candidate for the Mana Party. On 6 July 2011 the results of the official count of votes found Harawira won by a majority of 1117. * Darren Hughes announced his intention to resign in March 2011 following an alleged incident involving him. Louisa Wall became the replacement for Hughes from the List for the remainder of the 49th Parliament. * John Carter announced his resignation from politics in June 2011 in favour of a High Commissioner's post in the Cook Islands; he was replaced as a Minister by Craig Foss. As he resigned within six months of a general election, a by-election does not need to be held in his Northland seat.


Seating plan


As on 5 May 2009

The chamber is in a horseshoe-shape.


End of term

The chamber is in a horseshoe-shape.


References

{{Fifth National Government of New Zealand 2008 New Zealand general election New Zealand parliaments