1914 Wellington City mayoral election explained

Election Name:1914 Wellington City mayoral election
Country:New Zealand
Flag Image:Wellington Coat Of Arms.svg
Type:Presidential
Ongoing:no
Previous Election:1913 Wellington City mayoral election
Previous Year:1913
Next Election:1915 Wellington City mayoral election
Next Year:1915
Election Date:25 May 1914
Turnout:20,472 (50.19%)
Candidate1:John Luke
Party1:Wellington Citizens League
Popular Vote1:11,555
Percentage1:56.44
Candidate2:David McLaren
Party2:United Labour Party (New Zealand)
Popular Vote2:4,548
Percentage2:22.21
Candidate3:John Glover
Party3:Social Democratic Party (New Zealand)
Popular Vote3:4,369
Percentage3:21.34
Mayor
Before Election:John Luke
After Election:John Luke

The 1914 Wellington City mayoral by-election was part of the New Zealand local elections held that same year. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post electoral method.

Background

John Luke had been Mayor of Wellington since his election in 1913.[1] Luke sought re-election against former Mayor David McLaren who was defeated by Luke a year earlier and stood for the mayoralty once again. The third contestant was John Glover, a newspaper editor, who entered the contest for the newly formed Social Democratic Party (SDP), a more radical labour party. Harry Holland was originally selected as the SDP candidate, but was unable to contest the mayoralty as he was engaged in a sedition case so Glover stood in his place.[2] The divisions were deepened by McLaren's statement that SDP ringleader Bob Semple (later a councillor) was "as free from political principles as a frog from feathers". Glover's entry cut into McLaren's support base causing his polling to fall sharply from the previous two elections. Regardless of the divided labour vote, Luke won the contest with an outright majority.

The election came at the same time as the 1913 Great Strike, which began on the Wellington waterfront intensifying anti-Labour sentiment which assisted Luke in increasing his majority.

Results

The following table gives the election results:

References

Notes and References

  1. News: Wellington City Council . Free Lance . 7 . 10 May 1913 . 24 May 2016 . XIII . 671 .
  2. News: Wellington Mayoral Contest . . 29 April 1914 . 5 . 169 . 8 .