Christian Democrat Party (New Zealand)
Encyclopedia
The Christian Democrat Party of New Zealand
was a Christian
political party established in 1995. It contested the 1996 general election
as part of the Christian Coalition
with the Christian Heritage Party
.
It changed its name to Future New Zealand in 1998 and contested the 1999 election
. It formed a coalition with the United Party
as United Future New Zealand in 2000 and contested the 2002 election
. The coalition became a full merger the following year.
, a National Party
MP. Lee had a reputation as one of the more conservative MPs in Parliament, and was particularly active in opposing Fran Wilde
's homosexual
law reform bill. When the Christian Heritage Party, a strongly conservative group, was established, Lee initially rejected it, believing that it was better to work from within the National Party. Later, however, when he lost his ministerial rank in a Cabinet
reshuffle, Lee decided to leave National. Although there were attempts to have him join Christian Heritage, Lee disagreed with many Christian Heritage policies. He instead established a group called the United Progressive Party. After a failed attempt to merge the United Progressive Party with Christian Heritage, it was relaunched on 17 May 1995 under the name "Christian Democrats".
Talks between the Christian Democrats and Christian Heritage continued, with many people believing that a united front was the only way for the Christian conservative movement to be successful. There were, however, significant policy differences between the two parties. One major problem was Christian Heritage's "confessional" nature, which meant that only Christians could join the party. Graeme Lee and the Christian Democrats, by contrast, preferred to make their party "values-based", saying that anyone who shared the basic Christian moral outlook (whether actually Christian or not) should be able to participate. The two parties also disagreed on a number of other points, with the Christian Democrats generally being more moderate than Christian Heritage.
Eventually, however, the two parties agreed to contest the 1996 election as a single bloc. The resultant Christian Coalition was announced on 29 March 1996. Throughout the existence of the Coalition, however, there were tensions between the two parties – the Christian Democrats accused Christian Heritage of extremism and inflexibility, while Christian Heritage accused the Christian Democrats of putting political pragmatism before Christian morality. The Coalition received 4.33% of the votes, a little short of the 5% which would have given it seats in Parliament, and it collapsed soon afterwards, with both sides accusing each other of having held the Coalition back.
was selected as the party's new leader. Walton took the party even further away from the confessionalism of Christian Heritage, abandoning the explicitly religious nature of the party in favour of a broader "values-based" platform. It changed its name to Future New Zealand in November 1998 and contested the 1999 election
, gaining 1.12% of the votes and no seats.
Future New Zealand joined with the United Party
to form a coalition known as United Future New Zealand in November 2000 and contested the 2002 election
as such. The joint parties polled strongly, gaining eight seats in Parliament. The coalition became a full merger in 2003.
Only one founding member of the Christian Democrats, Murray Smith
, became a United Future MP, so there has been debate as to how much of the Christian Democrats remained in the modern party. One side of this debate argues that United Future list MPs Larry Baldock
, Bernie Ogilvy
and Paul Adams
all had involvement with evangelical organisations, such as Youth With A Mission
, the Masters Institute in Auckland, and City Impact Church
, and while they may not have been Christian Democrats, they were conservative Christian political activists and community figures before their entry to Parliament. Over and over again, United Future voted against socially liberal legislation in Parliament, or else supported socially conservative private members bills. These included the Prostitution Law Reform Act 2003, Care of Children Act 2004, Civil Union Act 2004, Relationships (Statutory References) Act 2005 and Death With Dignity Bill 2004, which they opposed. Murray Smith sponsored an unsuccessful private members bill which would have required parental notification before an abortion could be performed, which did not pass. Although a conservative Catholic, Gordon Copeland
has frequently cited the work of organisations such as the Society for Promotion of Community Standards and Right to Life New Zealand as a basis for comments against the Prostitution Law Reform Act, and himself introduced an attempt to ban same-sex marriage into the 48th New Zealand Parliament on 7 December 2005.
In February 2006, Copeland submitted an anti-abortion private members ballot bill into the 48th Parliament, entitled the Contraception, Sterilisation and Abortion (Informed Consent) Bill. This bill would ensure that women give informed consent before undergoing an abortion of their unborn child.
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...
was a Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
political party established in 1995. It contested the 1996 general election
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...
as part of the Christian Coalition
Christian Coalition (New Zealand)
The Christian Coalition was an Evangelical Christian political party operating in New Zealand. It was an alliance of the now-defunct Christian Heritage Party and the Christian Democrats, New Zealand's two fundamentalist Christian parties...
with the Christian Heritage Party
Christian Heritage New Zealand
The Christian Heritage Party of New Zealand was a New Zealand political party espousing Christian values...
.
It changed its name to Future New Zealand in 1998 and contested the 1999 election
New Zealand general election, 1999
The 1999 New Zealand general election was held on 27 November 1999 to determine the composition of the 46th New Zealand Parliament. The governing National Party, led by Prime Minister Jenny Shipley, was defeated, being replaced by a coalition of Helen Clark's Labour Party and the smaller Alliance...
. It formed a coalition with the United Party
United New Zealand
United New Zealand was a centrist political party in New Zealand founded in 1995. It merged with the Christian-based Future New Zealand party to form the United Future New Zealand party in 2000.-History:...
as United Future New Zealand in 2000 and contested the 2002 election
New Zealand general election, 2002
The 2002 New Zealand general election was held on 27 July 2002 to determine the composition of the 47th New Zealand Parliament. It saw the reelection of Helen Clark's Labour Party government, as well as the worst-ever performance by the opposition National Party.Arguably the most controversial...
. The coalition became a full merger the following year.
Founding and Christian Coalition
The Christian Democrats were founded by Graeme LeeGraeme Lee
Graeme Ernest Lee, MZNM, JP is a former New Zealand politician. Originally a National Party MP, he broke away to found the Christian Democrat Party.-Member of Parliament:...
, a 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:...
MP. Lee had a reputation as one of the more conservative MPs in Parliament, and was particularly active in opposing Fran Wilde
Fran Wilde
The Honorable Fran Wilde QSO , is a New Zealand politician, and former Wellington Labour MP, Minister of Tourism and 31st Mayor of Wellington...
's homosexual
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
law reform bill. When the Christian Heritage Party, a strongly conservative group, was established, Lee initially rejected it, believing that it was better to work from within the National Party. Later, however, when he lost his ministerial rank in a Cabinet
New Zealand Cabinet
The Cabinet of New Zealand functions as the policy and decision-making body of the executive branch within the New Zealand government system...
reshuffle, Lee decided to leave National. Although there were attempts to have him join Christian Heritage, Lee disagreed with many Christian Heritage policies. He instead established a group called the United Progressive Party. After a failed attempt to merge the United Progressive Party with Christian Heritage, it was relaunched on 17 May 1995 under the name "Christian Democrats".
Talks between the Christian Democrats and Christian Heritage continued, with many people believing that a united front was the only way for the Christian conservative movement to be successful. There were, however, significant policy differences between the two parties. One major problem was Christian Heritage's "confessional" nature, which meant that only Christians could join the party. Graeme Lee and the Christian Democrats, by contrast, preferred to make their party "values-based", saying that anyone who shared the basic Christian moral outlook (whether actually Christian or not) should be able to participate. The two parties also disagreed on a number of other points, with the Christian Democrats generally being more moderate than Christian Heritage.
Eventually, however, the two parties agreed to contest the 1996 election as a single bloc. The resultant Christian Coalition was announced on 29 March 1996. Throughout the existence of the Coalition, however, there were tensions between the two parties – the Christian Democrats accused Christian Heritage of extremism and inflexibility, while Christian Heritage accused the Christian Democrats of putting political pragmatism before Christian morality. The Coalition received 4.33% of the votes, a little short of the 5% which would have given it seats in Parliament, and it collapsed soon afterwards, with both sides accusing each other of having held the Coalition back.
Future New Zealand and United Future
Shortly after the Coalition collapsed, Graeme Lee stepped down as leader of the Christian Democrats, having decided some time earlier to retire if the Coalition was not successful. After a considerable period of time, Anthony WaltonAnthony Walton
Anthony John Walton is a former New Zealand political party president. He was leader of the Future New Zealand party, having previously been a prominent member of Future New Zealand's predecessor, the Christian Democrat Party. Before becoming president, Walton had been on the Christian Democrats'...
was selected as the party's new leader. Walton took the party even further away from the confessionalism of Christian Heritage, abandoning the explicitly religious nature of the party in favour of a broader "values-based" platform. It changed its name to Future New Zealand in November 1998 and contested the 1999 election
New Zealand general election, 1999
The 1999 New Zealand general election was held on 27 November 1999 to determine the composition of the 46th New Zealand Parliament. The governing National Party, led by Prime Minister Jenny Shipley, was defeated, being replaced by a coalition of Helen Clark's Labour Party and the smaller Alliance...
, gaining 1.12% of the votes and no seats.
Future New Zealand joined with the United Party
United New Zealand
United New Zealand was a centrist political party in New Zealand founded in 1995. It merged with the Christian-based Future New Zealand party to form the United Future New Zealand party in 2000.-History:...
to form a coalition known as United Future New Zealand in November 2000 and contested the 2002 election
New Zealand general election, 2002
The 2002 New Zealand general election was held on 27 July 2002 to determine the composition of the 47th New Zealand Parliament. It saw the reelection of Helen Clark's Labour Party government, as well as the worst-ever performance by the opposition National Party.Arguably the most controversial...
as such. The joint parties polled strongly, gaining eight seats in Parliament. The coalition became a full merger in 2003.
Only one founding member of the Christian Democrats, Murray Smith
Murray Smith (New Zealand)
Murray Smith was a New Zealand politician. He was a member of the United Future New Zealand party caucus, having been elected to Parliament as a list MP in the 2002 elections.-Christian Democrats:...
, became a United Future MP, so there has been debate as to how much of the Christian Democrats remained in the modern party. One side of this debate argues that United Future list MPs Larry Baldock
Larry Baldock
Larry Baldock is a New Zealand politician. He was a member of Parliament for the United Future New Zealand party from 2002 to 2005...
, Bernie Ogilvy
Bernie Ogilvy
Bernard James Ogilvy is a New Zealand educator and politician. He was a list member of Parliament for the United Future New Zealand party from 2002 to 2005...
and Paul Adams
Paul Adams (New Zealand)
Paul Adams is a politician and former rally driving champion from New Zealand.-Early years:Adams was originally a carpenter and joiner, but later established a business manufacturing outdoor playground equipment. Later, he became a professional rally driver, and won three prestigious New Zealand...
all had involvement with evangelical organisations, such as Youth With A Mission
Youth With A Mission
Youth With A Mission is an international, inter-denominational, non-profit Christian missionary organization...
, the Masters Institute in Auckland, and City Impact Church
City Impact Church New Zealand
City Impact Church is a Pentecostal church located in East Coast Bays, New Zealand.Formerly known as Bays Christian Fellowship, it was founded in 1982 by current senior pastors Peter Mortlock and his wife Bev Mortlock. It has now grown to around 3000 extended members...
, and while they may not have been Christian Democrats, they were conservative Christian political activists and community figures before their entry to Parliament. Over and over again, United Future voted against socially liberal legislation in Parliament, or else supported socially conservative private members bills. These included the Prostitution Law Reform Act 2003, Care of Children Act 2004, Civil Union Act 2004, Relationships (Statutory References) Act 2005 and Death With Dignity Bill 2004, which they opposed. Murray Smith sponsored an unsuccessful private members bill which would have required parental notification before an abortion could be performed, which did not pass. Although a conservative Catholic, Gordon Copeland
Gordon Copeland
Gordon Copeland is a New Zealand politician who was a Member of Parliament from 2002 to 2008. He was a list MP for the United Future New Zealand party from 2002 until he resigned from the party in 2007. He is now Party President of The Kiwi Party, which he co-founded with another former United...
has frequently cited the work of organisations such as the Society for Promotion of Community Standards and Right to Life New Zealand as a basis for comments against the Prostitution Law Reform Act, and himself introduced an attempt to ban same-sex marriage into the 48th New Zealand Parliament on 7 December 2005.
In February 2006, Copeland submitted an anti-abortion private members ballot bill into the 48th Parliament, entitled the Contraception, Sterilisation and Abortion (Informed Consent) Bill. This bill would ensure that women give informed consent before undergoing an abortion of their unborn child.
See also
- Christian politics in New ZealandChristian politics in New ZealandThis article discusses Christian politics in New Zealand, particularly socially conservative and evangelical Christian politics. Although slightly over half of New Zealand's population belong, at least nominally, to Christian denominations,...
- The Kiwi Party
- Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion Act 1977Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion Act 1977Contraception, Sterilisation, and Abortion Act 1977 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand.-External links:*...