Christchurch East is a New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 Parliamentary electorate

New Zealand electorates

An electorate is a voting district for elections to the Parliament of New Zealand. In informal discussion, electorates are often called seats. The most formal description, electoral district, is rarely seen outside of electoral legislation. Before 1996, all Members of Parliament were directly...

. It is currently held by Lianne Dalziel

Lianne Dalziel

Lianne Audrey Dalziel is a member of the New Zealand Parliament and was Minister of Immigration, Commerce, Minister of Food Safety and Associate Minister of Justice in the Fifth Labour Government of New Zealand...

 of the Labour Party

New Zealand Labour Party

The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....

.

History

The electorate was first created, as Christchurch City East, for the . Edward Jerningham Wakefield

Edward Jerningham Wakefield

Edward Jerningham Wakefield was the only son of Edward Gibbon Wakefield. He was born in London, and educated in England and France....

 was elected and represented the electorate until the end of the electoral term in 1875, when Christchurch City East was abolished again, replaced by the three-member electorate City of Christchurch

Christchurch (New Zealand electorate)

Christchurch was a parliamentary electorate in Christchurch, New Zealand. It existed three times. Originally it was the Town of Christchurch from 1853 to 1860. From the 1860–61 election to the 1871 election, it existed as City of Christchurch. It then existed from the 1875–76 election until the...

.

Christchurch East was re-created again for the . The first representative, Thomas Davey

Thomas Davey (New Zealand)

Thomas Henry Davey was a New Zealand Member of Parliament for the electorates of City of Christchurch and Christchurch East.-Early life:Davey was born in Liskeard in south east Cornwall, England. He learned the trade of printing....

, held the electorate for three parliamentary terms until 1914, when he retired. Davey was an Independent

Independent (politician)

In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...

 sympathetic to the Liberal Party

New Zealand Liberal Party

The New Zealand Liberal Party is generally regarded as having been the first real political party in New Zealand. It governed from 1891 until 1912. Out of office, the Liberals gradually found themselves pressed between the conservative Reform Party and the growing Labour Party...

.

Davey was succeeded by Henry Thacker

Henry Thacker

Dr Henry Thomas Joynt Thacker was a doctor, New Zealand Member of Parliament and Mayor of Christchurch.-Early life:...

 of the Liberal Party. Thacker served for two terms and was elected Mayor of Christchurch

Mayor of Christchurch

The Mayor of Christchurch is the head of the municipal government of Christchurch, New Zealand, and presides over the Christchurch City Council. The mayor is directly elected using a First Past the Post electoral system...

 in 1919.

Thacker was defeated in the by Tim Armstrong of the Labour Party

New Zealand Labour Party

The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....

. Since his 1922 win, the electorate (for as long as it existed) has been held by Labour. Armstrong was re-elected in the five subsequent general elections and died in office on 8 November 1942.

Armstrong's death triggered the , which was held on 6 February. The by-election was contested by five candidates, including representatives from the Labour Party

New Zealand Labour Party

The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....

, the Labour breakaway party Democratic Labour Party

Democratic Labour Party (New Zealand)

The Democratic Labour Party was a left-wing political party in New Zealand in the 1940s. It was a splinter from the larger Labour Party, and was led by the prominent socialist John A. Lee.-Party history:...

 and the National Party

New Zealand National Party

The New Zealand National Party is the largest party in the New Zealand House of Representatives and in November 2008 formed a minority government with support from three minor parties.-Policies:...

. The election was won by the Labour candidate, Mabel Howard

Mabel Howard

|-...

, and started her long parliamentary career, which included her becoming the first female cabinet minister in 1947.

Christchurch East was abolished in 1946 and re-created in 1996

New Zealand general election, 1996

The 1996 New Zealand general election was held on 12 October 1996 to determine the composition of the 45th New Zealand Parliament. It was notable for being the first election to be held under the new Mixed Member Proportional electoral system, and produced a parliament considerably more diverse...

 for the MMP-era.

Members of Parliament

Christchurch East has been represented by seven electorate MPs:

Key

Election	Winner
		Edward Jerningham Wakefield Edward Jerningham Wakefield Edward Jerningham Wakefield was the only son of Edward Gibbon Wakefield. He was born in London, and educated in England and France....
(Electorate abolished 1875–1905, see City of Christchurch Christchurch (New Zealand electorate) Christchurch was a parliamentary electorate in Christchurch, New Zealand. It existed three times. Originally it was the Town of Christchurch from 1853 to 1860. From the 1860–61 election to the 1871 election, it existed as City of Christchurch. It then existed from the 1875–76 election until the... )
		Thomas Davey Thomas Davey (New Zealand) Thomas Henry Davey was a New Zealand Member of Parliament for the electorates of City of Christchurch and Christchurch East.-Early life:Davey was born in Liskeard in south east Cornwall, England. He learned the trade of printing....
		Henry Thacker Henry Thacker Dr Henry Thomas Joynt Thacker was a doctor, New Zealand Member of Parliament and Mayor of Christchurch.-Early life:...
		Tim Armstrong
		Mabel Howard Mabel Howard |-...
(Electorate abolished 1946–1996)
		Larry Sutherland Larry Sutherland Larry Walter Sutherland was a former New Zealand politician. He was an MP from 1987 to 1999, representing the Labour Party. He was first elected to Parliament in the 1987 elections as MP for the Christchurch seat of Avon, replacing the retiring Mary Batchelor...
		Lianne Dalziel Lianne Dalziel Lianne Audrey Dalziel is a member of the New Zealand Parliament and was Minister of Immigration, Commerce, Minister of Food Safety and Associate Minister of Justice in the Fifth Labour Government of New Zealand...

List MPs

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

Election	Winner
		Aaron Gilmore Aaron Gilmore Aaron Gilmore is a New Zealand politician and member of the New Zealand National Party. He has been a list MP since the 2008 election.-Early life and education:...

Candidates in the

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Electorate (as at 11 November 2011): 39,605

2008 election

Note: lines coloured beige denote the winner of the electorate vote. Lines coloured pink denote a candidate elected to Parliament from their party's list.

2005 election

The results of the 2005 general election were as follows:

Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Party Votes	%
Labour New Zealand Labour Party The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....	Lianne Dalziel Lianne Dalziel Lianne Audrey Dalziel is a member of the New Zealand Parliament and was Minister of Immigration, Commerce, Minister of Food Safety and Associate Minister of Justice in the Fifth Labour Government of New Zealand...	20969	60.31	18893	53.44
National New Zealand National Party The New Zealand National Party is the largest party in the New Zealand House of Representatives and in November 2008 formed a minority government with support from three minor parties.-Policies:...	David Round	8996	25.88	9851	27.86
Green Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand is a political party that has seats in the New Zealand parliament. It focuses firstly on environmentalism, arguing that all other aspects of humanity will cease to be of concern if there is no environment to sustain it...	Mary McCammon	1698	4.88	1948	5.51
United	Dianne Wilson	1205	3.47	1176	3.33
Progressive New Zealand Progressive Party Jim Anderton's Progressive Party , is a New Zealand political party generally somewhat to the left of its ally, the Labour Party....	Karen Silcock	926	2.66	926	2.62
ACT	John Peters	401	1.15	277	0.78
ALCP Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party The Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party is a political party in New Zealand. It is dedicated to removing or reducing restrictions on the use of cannabis and similar substances...	Kevin O'Connell	299	0.86	101	0.29
Alliance Alliance (New Zealand political party) The Alliance is a left-wing political party in New Zealand. It was formed in 1991, and was influential in the 1990s, but has since declined and has no representation in parliament. It suffered a major setback after Jim Anderton, the party's leader, left the party in 2002, taking several of the...	Lynda Boyd	167	0.48	98	0.28
Direct Democracy Direct Democracy Party of New Zealand The Direct Democracy Party of New Zealand was a political party in New Zealand that promoted greater participation by the people in the decision-making of government. The party's leader was Kelvyn Alp....	Kyle Chapman Kyle Chapman Kyle Chapman is a former national director of the New Zealand National Front . He was also a candidate for Mayor of Christchurch, first for the National Front, and then for the National Democrats Party....	63	0.18	13	0.04
Anti-Capitalist	Paul Hopkinson	43	0.12	-	-
NZ First New Zealand First New Zealand First is a political party in New Zealand that was founded in 1993, following party founder Winston Peters' resignation from the National Party in 1992...	-	-	-	1694	4.77
Destiny Destiny New Zealand Destiny New Zealand was a Christian political party in New Zealand centred on the charismatic/pentecostal Destiny Church. The party described itself as "centre-right". It placed a strong focus on socially conservative values and argued that the breakdown of the traditional family was a primary...	-	-	-	170	0.48
Māori Party Maori Party The Māori Party, a political party in New Zealand, was formed on 7 July 2004. The Party is guided by eight constitutional "kaupapa", or Party objectives. Tariana Turia formed the Māori Party after resigning from the Labour Party where she had been a Cabinet Minister in the Fifth Labour-led...	-	-	-	97	0.27
Christian Heritage Christian Heritage New Zealand The Christian Heritage Party of New Zealand was a New Zealand political party espousing Christian values...	-	-	-	54	0.15
Democrats New Zealand Democratic Party The New Zealand Democratic Party for Social Credit is a small leftist political party in New Zealand. It is based around the ideas of Social Credit, an economic theory which also attracted some degree of support in Canada and Australia...	-	-	-	18	0.05
Libertarianz Libertarianz Libertarianz is a political party in New Zealand that advocates libertarianism, favouring self-government and limiting the power of the government over the individual. Ayn Rand's philosophy of Objectivism is a major influence on the party...	-	-	-	13	0.04
Family Rights PP New Zealand Family Rights Protection Party The New Zealand Family Rights Protection Party was a political party in New Zealand. It was primarily based around Pacific Islanders, and claims that the established political parties do not give sufficient consideration to the concerns of Pacific Islanders in New Zealand.The party was approved for...	-	-	-	7	0.02
99 MP 99 MP Party The 99 MP Party was a small New Zealand political party that contested the 2005 General Election. It supported a reduction of the number of Members of Parliament from 120 to 99.-History:...	-	-	-	6	0.02
Republic of NZ The Republic of New Zealand Party The Republic of New Zealand Party was a political party in New Zealand. The party's registration was cancelled at its own request in 2009...	-	-	-	6	0.02
One NZ One New Zealand Party The One New Zealand Party was a small political party in New Zealand. It was partly modeled on the Australian One Nation Party, founded by Pauline Hanson. Its primary focus was on matters such as the Treaty of Waitangi, but its wider platform was broadly paleoconservative or producerist...	-	-	-	5	0.01
informal votes		424		186
total valid votes		34767		35353
Labour hold New Zealand Labour Party The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....	Majority	11,973

External links

• Electorate Profile Parliamentary Library