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1902 general election
← outgoing members elected members →
All 80 seats in the New Zealand House of Representatives ; 41 seats were needed for a majority
Turnout	76.7%
	Results of the election.
Premier before election; Richard Seddon; Liberal	Subsequent Premier ; Richard Seddon; Liberal

The 1902 New Zealand general election was held on Tuesday, 25 November, in the general electorates, and on Monday, 22 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 15th session of the New Zealand Parliament. A total number of 415,789 (76.7%) voters turned out to vote.^[2]

The Rev Frank Isitt was nominated as the Prohibitionist candidate for ten separate electorates, and came second in eight. Another candidate, David Whyte, was nominated for two. Both men stood to ensure that a local liquor licensing poll was held in each electorate for which they were nominated.

1902 electoral redistribution

The Representation Act 1900 had increased the membership of the House of Representatives from general electorates 70 to 76, and this was implemented through the 1902 electoral redistribution. In 1902, changes to the country quota affected the three-member electorates in the four main centres. The tolerance between electorates was increased to ±1,250 so that the Representation Commissions (since 1896, there had been separate commissions for the North and South Islands) could take greater account of communities of interest. These changes proved very disruptive to existing boundaries.^[3] Six electorates were established for the first time: Courtenay, Newtown, Grey Lynn , Hurunui, Oroua, and Kaipara. Two electorates that previously existed were re-established: Mount Ida and Hutt.^[4]

This boundary redistribution resulted in the abolition of three electorates:^[4]

Ashley, held by Richard Meredith
Suburbs of Wellington, held by Thomas Wilford
Waihemo, held by Thomas Mackenzie

Results

Frank Isitt, a Methodist minister, stood in ten seats as a Prohibition candidate, and came second in eight.

Party totals

The following table gives party strengths and vote distribution according to Wilson (1985), who records Maori representatives as Independents prior to the 1905 election.^[5]


Election results
Party		Candidates	Total votes	Percentage	Seats won	Change
	Liberal	105	215,378	51.8	47	-2
	Conservative	53	85,652	20.6	19	±0
	Independent	54	115,173	27.7	14	+8

Votes summary

Popular Vote

Liberal			51.8%
Conservative			20.6%
Independents			27.7%

Parliament seats

Liberal			58.75%
Conservative			23.75%
Independents			17.50%

Electorate results

The following are the results of the 1902 general election:

Key

Liberal Conservative Independent Liberal Liberal–Labour Independent

Electorate results for the 1902 New Zealand general election^[6]^[7]
Electorate	Incumbent			Majority
General electorates
Ashburton		John McLachlan		439	John Studholme
Auckland, City of		William Joseph Napier	Alfred Kidd	934	William Richardson
		Joseph Witheford		1,515	William Joseph Napier
		George Fowlds	Frederick Baume	2,282	Arthur Rosser
Avon		William Tanner		58	John Russell Brunt
Awarua		Joseph Ward		1,882	David Whyte
Bay of Islands		Robert Houston		410	A G C Glass
Bay of Plenty		William Herries		626	D Lundon
Bruce		James Allen		1,113	J A Scott
Buller		James Colvin		2,601	Frank Isitt
Caversham		Thomas Sidey		444	William Earnshaw
Chalmers	New electorate		Edmund Allen	612	John White
Christchurch, City of		George John Smith	Tommy Taylor	899	William Whitehouse Collins
		Harry Ell		901	George John Smith
		William Whitehouse Collins	Thomas Davey	2,233	Arthur Hughes Turnbull
Clutha		James William Thomson		640	Daniel Stewart
Courtenay	New electorate		Charles Lewis	350	John Rennie
Dunedin, City of		Alfred Richard Barclay	Harry Bedford	1,321	Alfred Richard Barclay
		John A. Millar		1,321	Alfred Richard Barclay
		John A. Millar		3,775	R Chisholm
		James Arnold		3,775	R Chisholm
Eden		John Bollard		1,628	P E Cheal
Egmont		Walter Symes	William Thomas Jennings	15	Charles Leech^[8]
Ellesmere		Heaton Rhodes		501	C R Thornton
Franklin		William Massey		1,176	Alfred Richard Harris
Geraldine		Frederick Flatman		972	William Maslin
Grey		Arthur Guinness		2,145	Frank Isitt
Grey Lynn	New electorate		George Fowlds	118	T T Masefield
Hawera		Felix McGuire	Charles E. Major	21	Felix McGuire
Hawke's Bay		William Russell		1,443	Frank Isitt
Hurunui	New electorate		Andrew Rutherford	697	Henry Fear Reece
Hutt	New electorate		Thomas Wilford	441	Frederick Pirani
Invercargill		Josiah Hanan		1,508	David Whyte
Kaiapoi		David Buddo		1,256	Alfred Daniel Hassall
Kaipara	New electorate		Alfred Harding	359	John Stallworthy
Lyttelton		George Laurenson		2,172	William Rollitt
Manawatu		John Stevens	Job Vile	176	John Stevens
Manukau		Sir Maurice O'Rorke	Matthew Kirkbride	227	Sir Maurice O'Rorke
Marsden		Robert Thompson	Francis Mander	58	Robert Thompson
Masterton		Alexander Hogg		948	J C Cooper
Mataura		Robert McNab		438	J W Raymond
Motueka		Roderick McKenzie		1,838	Frank Isitt
Mount Ida	New electorate		Alexander Herdman	131	John Ewing
Napier		Alfred Fraser		1,490	Richard Joseph Eames^[9]
Nelson		John Graham		14	Harry Atmore
Newtown	New electorate		William Henry Peter Barber	28	Thomas Hislop
Oamaru		Thomas Young Duncan		880	John Marshall Brown^[10]
Ohinemuri		Jackson Palmer	Edward George Britton Moss	186	Jackson Palmer
Oroua	New electorate		Frank Lethbridge	613	Arthur Henry Tompkins
Otaki		William Hughes Field		1,510	Frank Isitt
Pahiatua		John O'Meara		337	Samuel Bolton
Palmerston		Frederick Pirani	William Thomas Wood	384	T R Hodder
Parnell		Frank Lawry		124	John Shera
Patea		Frederick Haselden	Walter Symes	451	Frederick Haselden
Rangitikei		Frank Lethbridge	Arthur Remington	247	W J Birch
Riccarton		George Warren Russell	George Witty	285	George Warren Russell
Selwyn		Charles Hardy		543	Joseph Ivess
Taieri		Walter Carncross	Donald Reid	354	J J Ramsay
Taranaki		Edward Smith		314	Henry Okey
Thames		James McGowan		885	William Henry Lucas
Timaru		William Hall-Jones		1,651	F H Smith
Tuapeka		James Bennet		66	Robert Gilkison
Waipawa		Charles Hall		1,568	James Taylor
Waikato		Frederic Lang		225	Henry Greenslade
Waikouaiti		Edmund Allen	Thomas Mackenzie	1,846	Frank Isitt
Wairarapa		J. T. Marryat Hornsby	Walter Clarke Buchanan	66	J. T. Marryat Hornsby
Wairau		Charles H. Mills		411	John Duncan
Waitaki		William Steward		592	John Campbell
Waitemata		Richard Monk	Ewen Alison	714	Alexander John Hatfield^[11]
Waiapu		James Carroll		1,670	Frank Isitt
Wakatipu		William Fraser		449	Robert Beatson Ross
Wallace		Michael Gilfedder	John Thomson	793	Michael Gilfedder
Wanganui		Archibald Willis		1,438	J W Baker
Wellington, City of		John Hutcheson	John Aitken	380	Patrick O'Regan
		Arthur Atkinson	John Duthie	591	Arthur Atkinson
		George Fisher		1,921	John Findlay
Westland		Richard Seddon		2,696	Frank Isitt
Māori electorates
Eastern Maori		Wi Pere		614	Pirimi Mataiawhea
Northern Maori		Hone Heke		1,546	Hāmiora Mangakāhia
Southern Maori		Tame Parata		80	Hone Taare Tikao
Western Maori		Henare Kaihau		2,370	Ngarangi Katitia

Notes

^ Gustafson, Barry. "Massey, William Ferguson". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 10 December 2011.
^ "General elections 1853-2005 – dates & turnout". Elections New Zealand. Archived from the original on 14 November 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2011.
^ McRobie 1989, pp. 67f.
^ ^a ^b McRobie 1989, pp. 63–68.
^ Wilson 1985, pp. 287–289.
^ "The General Election, 1902". National Library. 1903. pp. 1–4. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
^ "The Elections". The Press. Vol. LIX, no. 11436. 21 November 1902. p. 2. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
^ "Mr Charles Leech". Auckland Star. Vol. XXXIII, no. 281. 26 November 1902. p. 3. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
^ "Electoral District of Napier". Hawke's Bay Herald. Vol. XXXVII, no. 12308. 1 December 1902. p. 3. Retrieved 10 October 2015.
^ "Electoral District of Oamaru". The Oamaru Mail. Vol. XXVIII, no. 8060. 29 November 1902. p. 3. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
^ "Page 18 Advertisements Column 1". Observer. Vol. XXIII, no. 10. 22 November 1902. p. 18. Retrieved 3 December 2014.

Footnotes

^ Massey, the Senior Conservative Whip, served as de facto leader^[1]

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.