Tāmaki (New Zealand electorate)

Tāmaki electorate boundaries used since the 2014 election

Tāmaki is a parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the House of Representatives of New Zealand. The electorate is named after the Tamaki River that runs immediately east of the seat. The electorate is represented by Simon O'Connor, who became the National Party candidate after Allan Peachey withdrew from the 2011 election for health reasons; Peachey died before the election.

Population centres

The 1941 census had been postponed due to World War II, so the 1946 electoral redistribution had to take ten years of population growth and movements into account. The North Island gained a further two electorates from the South Island due to faster population growth. The abolition of the country quota through the Electoral Amendment Act, 1945 reduced the number and increased the size of rural electorates. None of the existing electorates remained unchanged, 27 electorates were abolished, eight former electorates were re-established, and 19 electorates were created for the first time, including Tamaki.^[1]

Tāmaki is based around Auckland City's wealthy eastern beaches, Mission Bay, Meadowbank, Saint Heliers, Kohimarama and Glendowie; it also contains the working-class suburb of Glen Innes on its southern fringe. Tāmaki is the home of a selection of New Zealand's emblematic historical moments: Ngāti Whatua activism at Bastion Point (sparking a chain of events leading to the modern Treaty of Waitangi grievance settlement process) occurred inside the seat's boundaries, a seat at the time represented by the contentious Robert Muldoon, the Prime Minister responsible for the Crown's response to the occupation of Bastion Point. Among other Ngāti Whatua land taken through governmental application of public works legislation is Paratai Drive, once New Zealand's most expensive street. The area around Mission Bay is also home to the Savage Memorial, a huge site dedicated to the memory of former Labour Michael Joseph Savage, architect of the welfare state in New Zealand.

History

The National Party has held Tāmaki in all its various incarnations since 1960, when future Prime Minister Rob Muldoon (later Sir Robert) began his parliamentary career by ousting long-time Labour stalwart Bob Tizard,^[2] and staying firmly in place until his self-selected departure from parliament at the end of 1991. In four elections (1972, 1975, 1978 and 1981) Bill Andersen of the Socialist Unity Party ran against him, receiving between 39 and 188 votes.

Muldoon's departure caused a by-election in 1992, where candidate Clem Simich won despite fierce competition in an environment where both major parties were out of favour with the electorate. Simich gave up his seat ahead of the 2005 election to high school principal Allan Peachey. Simich was returned to parliament from his party's list, having chosen to move from standing for one of his party's safest seats to instead contest Māngere, easily Labour's safest seat. Since 2005, Tāmaki was represented by Allan Peachey, who announced his retirement at the end of the parliamentary term in 2011 for health reasons. Simon O'Connor was chosen by the National Party to contest the electorate in the 2011 general election.^[3]

Members of Parliament

Unless otherwise stated, all MPs terms began and ended at general elections.

Key

  Labour     National     ACT  

¹Rob Muldoon resigned effective December 1991
²Allan Peachey announced that, due to his ill-health he would retire at the 2011 election, but he died twenty days before election day

List MPs

Members of Parliament elected from party lists in elections where that person also unsuccessfully contested the Tāmaki electorate. Unless otherwise stated, all MPs terms began and ended at general elections.

Election results

2011 election

Electorate (as at 26 November 2011): 49,080^[5]

2008 election

General Election 2008: Tāmaki[6]
Notes: Green background denotes the winner of the electorate vote. Pink background denotes a candidate elected from their party list. Yellow background denotes an electorate win by a list member. A Y or N denotes status of any incumbent, win or lose respectively.
Party		Candidate		Votes	%	±%	Party Votes	%	±%
	National	Y Allan Peachey		24,863	65.74		23,205	60.22
	Labour	Josephine Bartley		7,843	20.74		8,152	21.16
	Green	Richard Leckinger		2,216	5.86		2,040	5.29
	ACT	Chris Simmons		1,683	4.45		3,053	7.92
	NZ First	Doug Nabbs		639	1.69		954	2.48
	Progressive	Ralph Taylor		292	0.77		188	0.49
	United Future	Gregory Graydon		282	0.75		294	0.76
	Māori						201	0.52
	Bill and Ben						104	0.27
	Pacific						98	0.25
	Kiwi						79	0.21
	Legalise Cannabis						65	0.17
	Family Party						46	0.12
	Libertarianz						20	0.05
	RAM						19	0.05
	Alliance						7	0.02
	Democrats						3	0.01
	RONZ						2	0.01
	Workers Party						2	0.01
Informal votes				402			152
Total Valid votes				37,818			38,532
	National hold		Majority	17,020

2005 election

1992 by-election

1990 election

Notes

References

• McRobie, Alan (1989). Electoral Atlas of New Zealand. Wellington: GP Books. ISBN 0-477-01384-8. 
• Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First published in 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103. 

External links

• Electorate Profile Parliamentary Library