Whangārei (formerly Whangarei) is a New Zealand 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 The prince-electors (german: Kurfürst pl. , cz, Kurfiřt, ...

that was first created for the . The electorate is usually a reasonably safe

National National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

seat, and was held for long periods by John Banks (–1999) and

Phil Heatley Philip Reeve Heatley (born 5 April 1967) is a New Zealand politician. He is a member of the National Party. From 2008 until January 2013, he was a member of cabinet, holding the portfolios of Fisheries, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Energy and Re ...

(–2014), before being won in the by

Shane Reti Shane Raymond Reti (born 5 June 1963) is a New Zealand politician and a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives, first elected at the 2014 general election. He is a member of the New Zealand National Party and served as its deputy ...

. In the Reti narrowly lost the seat to Labour's Emily Henderson.

Population centres

Since the , the number of electorates in the South Island was fixed at 25, with continued faster population growth in the North Island leading to an increase in the number of general electorates. There were 84 electorates for the 1969 election, and the 1972 electoral redistribution saw three additional general seats created for the North Island, bringing the total number of electorates to 87. Together with increased urbanisation in

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

and

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

, the changes proved very disruptive to existing electorates. In the South Island, three electorates were abolished, and three electorates were newly created. In the North Island, five electorates were abolished, two electorates were recreated, and six electorates were newly created (including Whangārei). The boundaries of the Whangārei electorate were adjusted for the ; before then, the electorate bordered onto the

Kaipara Harbour Kaipara Harbour is a large enclosed harbour estuary complex on the north western side of the North Island of New Zealand. The northern part of the harbour is administered by the Kaipara District and the southern part is administered by the Auckla ...

. Redistributions in 2002, 2007, and 2013/14 did not change the boundaries further. Changes announced in April 2020 will move Poroti and Maungakaramea into the Northland electorate and also change the electorate's name from Whangarei to Whangārei. The electorate includes the following population centres: *

Whangārei Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the regional capital of Northland Region. It is part of the Whangārei District, a local body created in 1989 from the former Whangārei City, Whangārei County and Hikurangi Town coun ...

Hikurangi Hikurangi is a settlement in Northland, New Zealand. The city of Whangārei is 17 km (11 miles) to the south, and Kawakawa is 39 km (24 miles) northwest. The Glenbervie Forest is southeast of the settlement. State Highway ...

* Ruakaka It extends from

in the north to Ruatangata and Maungatapere in the west and Waipu and Langs Beach in the south.

History

The electorate was created for the . It was won by the Labour Party in that election, but was then held by the National Party until 2020.

held it from until he retired in 2014.

stood for National in the and had a large margin over Labour's Kelly Ellis.

Members of Parliament

Unless otherwise stated, all MPs terms began and ended at a general election. Key

List MPs

Members of Parliament elected from party lists in elections where that person also unsuccessfully contested the Whangārei electorate. Unless otherwise stated, all MPs terms began and ended at general elections. ¹Donnelly resigned in February 2008 when appointed High Commissioner to the

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

Election results

2020 election

2017 election

2014 election

2011 election

Electorate (as at 26 November 2011): 46,511

2008 election

2005 election

2002 election

1999 election

Refer to Candidates in the New Zealand general election 1999 by electorate#Whangarei for a list of candidates.

1993 election

1990 election

1987 election

1984 election

1981 election

1978 election

1975 election

1972 election

Notes

References

* * *

External links

Whangarei Electorate Profile
Parliamentary Library {{DEFAULTSORT:Whangarei (New Zealand Electorate) New Zealand electorates 1972 establishments in New Zealand