1879 City of Auckland West by-election explained

The 1879 City of Auckland West by-election was a by-election held on 4 March 1879 in the electorate during the 6th New Zealand Parliament. It was then a two-member electorate.

The by-election was caused by the resignation of the incumbent, Patrick Dignan, who had previously represented the electorate. He was a Catholic layman, and a supporter of denominational education.^{[1] [2]}

David Goldie was elected. He supported secular education, and his victory was headlined "Another election victory for Secularists".^[3] Similarly the winner of the 1879 City of Nelson by-election was described as a "Secularist".

Result

The following table gives the election result:

References

1. News: Auckland . Evening Post . 5 March 1879 . Papers Past.
2. News: Latest Telegrams . Evening Post . 27 February 1879. .
3. News: Auckland News: Election etc . West Coast Times . 5 March 1879. .