Birkenhead (New Zealand electorate)

Birkenhead electorate boundaries between 1993 and 1996.

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.^[1] 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.^[2] In the North Island, five electorates were newly created (including Birkenhead) and one electorate was reconstituted while three electorates were abolished.^[3] In the South Island, three electorates were newly created and one electorate was reconstituted while three electorates were abolished.^[4] The overall effect of the required changes was highly disruptive to existing electorates, with all but three electorates having their boundaries altered.^[5] These changes came into effect with the 1969 election.^[2]

This suburban electorate was on the North Shore of Auckland. Most of its original area had previously been with the Waitemata electorate.^[6] It was absorbed into the Northcote electorate.

History

Norman King of the Labour Party had first been elected to the Waitemata electorate in the 1954 election. He was the first representatives for the Birkenhead electorate when it was created for the 1969 election.^[7] King was defeated in the 1975 election by Jim McLay of the National Party.^[8]

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

Members of Parliament

Key

  Labour   National

Election	Winner
1969 election		Norman King
1972 election
1975 election		Jim McLay
1978 election
1981 election
1984 election
1987 election		Jenny Kirk
1990 election		Ian Revell
1993 election
(Electorate abolished in 1996; see Northcote)

Election results

1993 election

1993 general election: Birkenhead^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Ian Revell	7,866	36.99	−12.16
	Labour	Ann Hartley	7,762	36.50
	Alliance	Bob Lack	3,314	15.58
	NZ First	Ruth Norman	1,681	7.90
	Christian Heritage	Tony Brebner	364	1.71
	McGillicuddy Serious	Ben Nicholson	164	0.77
	Natural Law	Angela Wood	68	0.31
	Workers Rights	Caroline Selwood-Hatt	45	0.21
Majority			104	0.48	−13.21
Turnout			21,264	85.98	−0.54
Registered electors			24,730

1990 election

1990 general election: Birkenhead^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Ian Revell	10,094	49.15
	Labour	Jenny Kirk	7,281	35.45	−18.25
	Green	Michael Crowther	1,820	8.86
	NewLabour	Ross Tozer	900	4.38
	Democrats	Richard George Midson	179	0.87	−1.05
	McGillicuddy Serious	Katerina Jane Julian	161	0.78
	Independent	Tony Seagar	99	0.48
Majority			2,813	13.69
Turnout			20,534	85.44	−2.85
Registered electors			24,033

1987 election

1987 general election: Birkenhead^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jenny Kirk	11,063	53.70
	National	Barry Gustafson	8,843	42.92
	Democrats	Richard George Midson	397	1.92
	NZ Party	Eddie Yeoman	186	0.90
	Libertarian	D I M Fraser	110	0.53
Majority			2,220	10.77
Turnout			20,599	88.29	−4.93
Registered electors			23,329

1984 election

1984 general election: Birkenhead^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Jim McLay	9,547	43.82	−2.69
	Labour	John Course	7,830	35.94
	NZ Party	Janie Pearce	3,761	17.26
	Social Credit	Bruce Raymond Sheppard	648	2.97
Majority			1,717	7.88	−2.23
Turnout			21,786	93.22	+3.15
Registered electors			23,370

1981 election

1981 general election: Birkenhead^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Jim McLay	9,672	46.51	−2.11
	Labour	Bill Smith	7,568	36.39
	Social Credit	Mervyn Adair	3,552	17.08
Majority			2,104	10.11	−3.06
Turnout			20,792	90.07	+18.54
Registered electors			23,082

1978 election

1978 general election: Birkenhead^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Jim McLay	9,350	48.62	−3.14
	Labour	Rex Stanton	6,816	35.44
	Social Credit	Des Long	2,583	13.43
	Values	Keith Wargeant	480	2.49
Majority			2,534	13.17
Turnout			19,229	71.53	−13.30
Registered electors			26,882

1975 election

1975 general election: Birkenhead^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Jim McLay	10,871	51.76
	Labour	Norman King	8,055	38.35	−11.46
	Values	Ray Tomes	1,253	5.96
	Social Credit	George Thew	907	4.31	−1.17
	Independent	Noel Hardie	14	0.06
Majority			2,816	13.40	−0.23
Turnout			21,000	84.83	−5.32
Registered electors			24,753

1972 election

1972 general election: Birkenhead^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Norman King	8,213	49.81	−1.42
	National	Don McKinnon	6,680	40.51	−1.67
	Social Credit	George Thew	904	5.48
	Values	Andrew John Quaill	642	3.89
	New Democratic	Len Inkster	47	0.28
Majority			1,533	9.29	+0.24
Turnout			16,486	90.15	+1.33
Registered electors			18,286

1969 election

1969 general election: Birkenhead^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Norman King	9,623	51.23
	National	Don McKinnon	7,922	42.18
	Social Credit	John Robert Neil	1,236	6.58
Majority			1,701	9.05
Turnout			18,781	88.82
Registered electors			21,144

Notes

1. McRobie 1989, pp. 108, 111, 112.
2. McRobie 1989, p. 111.
3. McRobie 1989, pp. 107, 111.
4. McRobie 1989, pp. 108, 112.
5. McRobie 1989, pp. 111f.
6. McRobie 1989, pp. 106, 111.
7. Wilson 1985, p. 210.
8. Wilson 1985, pp. 210, 216.
9. Part 1: Votes recorded at each polling place (Technical report). New Zealand Chief Electoral Office. 1993.
10. Part 1: Votes recorded at each polling place (Technical report). New Zealand Chief Electoral Office. 1990.
11. Norton 1988, pp. 202.

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.
• Norton, Clifford (1988). New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946–1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science. Wellington: Victoria University of Wellington. ISBN 0-475-11200-8.