| Election Name: | 1983 Wellington City mayoral election |
| Country: | New Zealand |
| Flag Image: | Wellington Coat Of Arms.svg |
| Type: | Presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1980 Wellington City mayoral election |
| Previous Year: | 1980 |
| Next Election: | 1986 Wellington City mayoral election |
| Next Year: | 1986 |
| Election Date: | 8 October 1983 |
| Turnout: | 38,856 (37.59%) |
| Candidate1: | Ian Lawrence |
| Party1: | Wellington Citizens' Association |
| Popular Vote1: | 19,952 |
| Percentage1: | 49.28 |
| Candidate2: | Helene Ritchie |
| Party2: | New Zealand Labour Party |
| Popular Vote2: | 11,876 |
| Percentage2: | 30.56 |
| Mayor | |
| Before Election: | Sir Michael Fowler |
| After Election: | Ian Lawrence |
The 1983 Wellington City mayoral election was part of the New Zealand local elections held that same year. In 1983, elections were held for the Mayor of Wellington plus other local government positions including eighteen city councillors. The polling was conducted using the standard first-past-the-post electoral method.
The election saw deputy mayor Ian Lawrence voted in as the new Mayor of Wellington to replace Sir Michael Fowler who had retired. Lawrence retained the Mayoralty for the Citizens' Association, seeing off a challenge from high profile Labour Party councillor Helene Ritchie. Given Lawrence's quiet style and low profile compared to Ritchie's more marked public reputation, most commentators and pollsters were predicting a very close result.[1] The eventual outcome was a surprise to many with Lawrence winning by a margin exceeding 8,000 votes, with media dubbing him "Landslide Lawrence". Ritchie retrospectively blamed her loss on an "anti-woman vote".[2]
The 1983 election was also notable as it saw former Citizens' councillor Leone Harkness re-elected to the council as an independent candidate, the first time a candidate without an official party ticket had been elected to the council since Berkeley Dallard in 1950. It also saw Jenny Brough (later Harris) retain her seat on the council after defecting from Labour in 1982. It also marked the last time in Wellington where local body elections elected councillors at large.
| Onslow College | 163 | 113 | 3 | 1 | ||
| Paparangi School | 72 | 44 | 1 | 2 | ||
| White's Garage | 211 | 102 | 3 | 2 | ||
| Newlands Tennis Club | 33 | 23 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Churton Park School | 2 | 0 | 0 | |||
| Ohariu Hall | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Cashmere Avenue School | 50 | 55 | 1 | 0 | ||
| St Barnabas Parish Hall | 50 | 38 | 3 | 1 | ||
| Ngaio School | 64 | 32 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Ngaio Town Hall | 47 | 26 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Ngaio Playcentre | 32 | 16 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Wilton School | 235 | 172 | 18 | 0 | ||
| Thorndon Masonic Hall | 63 | 32 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Victoria University | 95 | 55 | 29 | 2 | 1 | |
| Methodist Church Hall | 70 | 46 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Sprott House | 74 | 75 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Karori School | 185 | 133 | 8 | 5 | ||
| Karori Pavilion | 27 | 15 | 8 | 0 | ||
| Macalister Park | 40 | 18 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Brooklyn Baptist Hall | 108 | 27 | 6 | 0 | ||
| St Matthew's Hall | 75 | 18 | 1 | |||
| Webb St. Depot | 38 | 7 | 0 | |||
| Samoan Assembly of God | 121 | 24 | 3 | 2 | ||
| Houghton Valley School | 30 | 4 | 5 | |||
| Salvation Army Hall | 31 | 0 | 0 | |||
| Southern Cross Scout Hall | 51 | 6 | 1 | |||
| Rongotai College | 92 | 66 | 9 | 11 | ||
| Lyall Bay School | 161 | 61 | 10 | 4 | ||
| All Saints' Church Hall | 15 | 24 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Haitaitai School | 142 | 55 | 8 | 1 | ||
| Congregational Church Hall | 105 | 57 | 35 | 3 | 1 | |
| Miramar South School | 90 | 44 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Marist Brothers' School | 39 | 3 | 0 | |||
| Strathmore Park School | 24 | 8 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Seatoun School | 23 | 16 | 6 | 1 | ||
| Worser Bay School | 399 | 203 | 25 | 2 | ||
| Postal votes | 99 | 21 | 6 | 8 | ||
| Special votes | 11,876 | 6,208 | 643 | 177 |
Table footnotes: