Birkenhead (New Zealand electorate) explained

Birkenhead was a New Zealand Parliamentary electorate on Auckland's North Shore from 1969 to 1996, when it was absorbed into the Northcote electorate.

Population centres

Through an amendment in the Electoral Act in 1965, the number of electorates in the South Island was fixed at 25, an increase of one since the 1962 electoral redistribution. It was accepted that through the more rapid population growth in the North Island, the number of its electorates would continue to increase, and to keep proportionality, three new electorates were allowed for in the 1967 electoral redistribution for the next election. In the North Island, five electorates were newly created (including Birkenhead) and one electorate was reconstituted while three electorates were abolished. In the South Island, three electorates were newly created and one electorate was reconstituted while three electorates were abolished. The overall effect of the required changes was highly disruptive to existing electorates, with all but three electorates having their boundaries altered. These changes came into effect with the .

This suburban electorate was on the North Shore of Auckland. Most of its original area had previously been with the electorate. It was absorbed into the Northcote electorate.

History

Norman King of the Labour Party had first been elected to the Waitemata electorate in the . He was the first representatives for the Birkenhead electorate when it was created for the 1969 election. King was defeated in the by Jim McLay of the National Party.

The electorate was abolished in the 1996 election, the first mixed-member proportional (MMP) election.

Members of Parliament

Key

width=100Electionwidth=175 colspan=2Winner
width=5 rowspan=2 bgcolor=Norman King
Jim McLay
bgcolor=Jenny Kirk
Ian Revell
(Electorate abolished in 1996; see)

Election results

1969 election

References