Egmont is a former New Zealand 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...

, in south Taranaki. It existed from 1871 to 1978.

Geographic coverage

Egmont is the old name of the mountain that is the Taranaki landmark of Mount Taranaki. A village north of the mountain is also called Egmont

Egmont Village

Egmont Village is a settlement in Taranaki, New Zealand. State Highway 3 runs through it. New Plymouth is 12 km to the north-west, and Inglewood is 6 km to the south-east...

.

History

This rural electorate was formed in 1871. Mount Egmont, after which it is named, was confiscated

New Zealand land confiscations

The New Zealand land confiscations took place during the 1860s to punish the Kingitanga movement for attempting to set up an alternative, Māori, form of government that forbade the selling of land. The confiscation law targeted Kingitanga Māori against whom the government had waged war to restore...

 from Māori by the New Zealand Government under the powers of the New Zealand Settlements Act 1863, following the Second Taranaki War

Second Taranaki War

-Background and causes of the war:The conflict in Taranaki had its roots in the First Taranaki War, which had ended in March 1861 with an uneasy truce. Neither side fulfilled the terms of the truce, leaving many of the issues unresolved...

.

William Gisborne

William Gisborne

William Gisborne was Colonial Secretary of New Zealand 1869–72 and Minister of Public Works 1870–71. The city of Gisborne is named after him.He was the third son of Thomas John Gisborne of Holme Hall, near Bakewell, Derbyshire...

 was the first elected representative in 1871, elected unopposed. He was a minister in the third Fox Ministry and resigned from Parliament when the government fell on 10 September 1872. Harry Atkinson

Harry Atkinson

Henry Albert "Harry" Atkinson served as the tenth Premier of New Zealand on four separate occasions in the late 19th century, and was Colonial Treasurer for a total of ten years...

 won the resulting 1872 by-election. He held the electorate until 1891, when he resigned. During this time, he was Premier

Prime Minister of New Zealand

The Prime Minister of New Zealand is New Zealand's head of government consequent on being the leader of the party or coalition with majority support in the Parliament of New Zealand...

 on four occasions.

Atkinson's resignation caused the 1891 by-election, which was won by Felix McGuire

Felix McGuire

Felix McGuire was an independent conservative Member of Parliament in New Zealand.He was elected to the Egmont electorate in a 1891 by-election after the resignation of Harry Atkinson, and represented it until the end of the 12th Parliament in 1896...

. He held the electorate until 1896, when he (successfully) stood for the Hawera electorate

Hawera (New Zealand electorate)

Hawera was a parliamentary electorate in the South Taranaki District of New Zealand from 1896 to 1908.The electorate was represented by two Members of Parliament:* Felix McGuire 1896–1902* Charles E. Major 1902–08...

 instead. He was succeeded by Walter Symes

Walter Symes

Walter Symes was a Liberal Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand.He was elected to the Egmont electorate from 1896 to 1902; and then the Patea electorate from 1902 to 1908, when he was defeated for Stratford-References:...

 from 1896

New Zealand general election, 1896

The New Zealand general election of 1896 was held on Wednesday, 4 December in the general electorates, and on Thursday, 19 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 74 MPs to the 13th session of the New Zealand Parliament...

 until 1902, when he (successfully) stood for Patea

Patea (New Zealand electorate)

Patea is a former New Zealand electorate, in south Taranaki. It existed from 1893 to 1963.-Geographic coverage:The electorate was based on the town of Patea, which used to have a freezing-works for the preparation of meat for export until 1982.-History:...

. The next representative was William Thomas Jennings

William Thomas Jennings

William Thomas Jennings was a Liberal Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand.-Career:He was born in Auckland, where he attended St. Paul's school and subsequently became an apprentice printer in the offices of the New Zealander...

 from 1902

New Zealand general election, 1902

The New Zealand general election of 1902 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...

 until 1908, when he (successfully) stood for Taumarunui

Taumarunui (New Zealand electorate)

Taumarunui was a parliamentary electorate in the King Country in the Manawatu-Wanganui region of New Zealand from 1908 to 1919.The electorate was represented by two Members of Parliament: William Thomas Jennings 1908–11 and 1914–19, and Charles Kendall Wilson 1911–14.Jenings had won the seat back...

.

Bradshaw Dive

Bradshaw Dive

Bradshaw Dive was a Reform Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand.He was elected to the Egmont electorate in the 1908 general election, but was defeated in 1911. He later served as Mayor of Tauranga.-References:...

 was elected in 1908

New Zealand general election, 1908

The New Zealand general election of 1908 was held on Tuesday, 17 November, 24 November and 1 December in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 2 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 17th session of the New Zealand Parliament...

 and held the electorate for one term. He was defeated in 1911

New Zealand general election, 1911

The New Zealand general election of 1911 was held on Thursday, 7 and 14 December in the general electorates, and on Tuesday, 19 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 18th session of the New Zealand Parliament...

 by Thomas Mackenzie

Thomas Mackenzie

Sir Thomas Noble Mackenzie GCMG was a Scottish-born New Zealand politician and explorer who briefly served as the 18th Prime Minister of New Zealand in 1912, and later served as New Zealand High Commissioner in London....

, who resigned in 1912. Charles Anderson Wilkinson won the resulting 1912 by-election and retired in 1919. He was succeeded by Oswald Hawken

Oswald Hawken

Oswald James Hawken was a Reform Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand, and was a cabinet minister 1926-28 in the Reform Government.He was elected to the Egmont electorate in the 1919 general election, but was defeated in 1928.-References:...

, who won the 1919 election, but who got defeated in 1928 by Wilkinson coming out of his retirement. This time, Wilkinson held the electorate until 1943, when he retired for good.

The electorate was then held by three members of 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:...

; Ernest Corbett

Ernest Corbett

Ernest Bowyer Corbett was a New Zealand National Party politician.He held the Egmont seat from 1943 to 1957. He was Minister of Māori Affairs, Minister of Lands and Minister of Forests in the First National Government...

 (1943–57), William Sheat

William Sheat

William Alfred Sheat OBE was a New Zealand Member of Parliament for two Taranaki electorates.-Early life:Sheat was born in 1899. He attended Victoria University College and graduated B.A. in 1920 and LL.B. in 1923. He married Ella Marjorie Newtown, who is also a Victoria University College...

 (1957–66) and Venn Young

Venn Young

Venn Spearman Young was a New Zealand politician. He was a member of the National Party, and served as a Cabinet Minister in the government of Robert Muldoon. He is known for his failed attempt to legalise "homosexual acts" in 1975.-Early life:Young was born in Stratford, Taranaki...

 (1966–78).

Egmont was abolished in 1978, and was replaced by the Waitotara electorate

Waitotara (New Zealand electorate)

Waitotara is a former New Zealand Parliamentary electorate, in South Taranaki.-Population Centres:The electorate is rural, in South Taranaki. It is based on the town of Waitotara, and is north of the city of Wanganui.-History:...

.

Members of Parliament

Egmont was represented by twelve Members of Parliament:

Election	Winner
1871 election		William Gisborne William Gisborne William Gisborne was Colonial Secretary of New Zealand 1869–72 and Minister of Public Works 1870–71. The city of Gisborne is named after him.He was the third son of Thomas John Gisborne of Holme Hall, near Bakewell, Derbyshire...  (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... )
1872 by-election		Harry Atkinson Harry Atkinson Henry Albert "Harry" Atkinson served as the tenth Premier of New Zealand on four separate occasions in the late 19th century, and was Colonial Treasurer for a total of ten years...  (Independent)
1875–76 election
1879 election New Zealand general election, 1879 The New Zealand general election of 1879 was held between 28 August and 15 September to elect a total of 88 MPs to the 7th session of the New Zealand Parliament. The Māori vote was held on 1 and 8 September. A total number of 82,271 voters turned out to vote.The election came about when George...
1881 election New Zealand general election, 1881 The New Zealand general election of 1881 was held 9 December to elect a total of 95 MPs to the 8th session of the New Zealand Parliament. The Māori vote was held on 8 December...
1884 election New Zealand general election, 1884 The New Zealand general election of 1884 was held on 22 July to elect a total of 95 MPs to the 9th session of the New Zealand Parliament. The Māori vote was held on 21 July. A total number of 137,686 voters turned out to vote.-References:...
1887 election New Zealand general election, 1887 The New Zealand general election of 1887 was held on 26 September to elect 95 MPs to the tenth session of the New Zealand Parliament. The Māori vote was held on 7 September. 175,410 votes were cast....
1890 election New Zealand general election, 1890 The New Zealand general election of 1890 was one of New Zealand's most significant. It marked the beginning of party politics in New Zealand with the formation of the First Liberal government, which was to enact major welfare, labour and electoral reforms, including giving the vote to women.It was...
1891 by-election		Felix McGuire Felix McGuire Felix McGuire was an independent conservative Member of Parliament in New Zealand.He was elected to the Egmont electorate in a 1891 by-election after the resignation of Harry Atkinson, and represented it until the end of the 12th Parliament in 1896...  (Independent)
1893 election New Zealand general election, 1893 The New Zealand general election of 1893 was held on Tuesday, 28 November in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 20 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 74 MPs to the 12th session of the New Zealand Parliament...
1896 election New Zealand general election, 1896 The New Zealand general election of 1896 was held on Wednesday, 4 December in the general electorates, and on Thursday, 19 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 74 MPs to the 13th session of the New Zealand Parliament...		Walter Symes Walter Symes Walter Symes was a Liberal Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand.He was elected to the Egmont electorate from 1896 to 1902; and then the Patea electorate from 1902 to 1908, when he was defeated for Stratford-References:...  (Liberal 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... )
1899 election New Zealand general election, 1899 The New Zealand general election of 1899 was held on Wednesday, 6 December in the general electorates, and on Tuesday, 19 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 74 MPs to the 14th session of the New Zealand Parliament. A total number of 373,744 voters turned out to...
1902 election New Zealand general election, 1902 The New Zealand general election of 1902 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...		William Thomas Jennings William Thomas Jennings William Thomas Jennings was a Liberal Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand.-Career:He was born in Auckland, where he attended St. Paul's school and subsequently became an apprentice printer in the offices of the New Zealander...  (Liberal 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... )
1905 election New Zealand general election, 1905 The New Zealand general election of 1905 was held on Wednesday, 6 December in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 20 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 16th session of the New Zealand Parliament...
1908 election New Zealand general election, 1908 The New Zealand general election of 1908 was held on Tuesday, 17 November, 24 November and 1 December in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 2 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 17th session of the New Zealand Parliament...		Bradshaw Dive Bradshaw Dive Bradshaw Dive was a Reform Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand.He was elected to the Egmont electorate in the 1908 general election, but was defeated in 1911. He later served as Mayor of Tauranga.-References:...  (Reform New Zealand Reform Party The Reform Party, formally the New Zealand Political Reform League, was New Zealand's second major political party, having been founded as a conservative response to the original Liberal Party... )
1911 election New Zealand general election, 1911 The New Zealand general election of 1911 was held on Thursday, 7 and 14 December in the general electorates, and on Tuesday, 19 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 18th session of the New Zealand Parliament...		Thomas Mackenzie Thomas Mackenzie Sir Thomas Noble Mackenzie GCMG was a Scottish-born New Zealand politician and explorer who briefly served as the 18th Prime Minister of New Zealand in 1912, and later served as New Zealand High Commissioner in London....  (Liberal 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... )
1912 by-election		Charles Anderson Wilkinson (Reform New Zealand Reform Party The Reform Party, formally the New Zealand Political Reform League, was New Zealand's second major political party, having been founded as a conservative response to the original Liberal Party... )
1914 election New Zealand general election, 1914 The New Zealand general election of 1914 was held on 10 December to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 19th session of the New Zealand Parliament. A total number of 616,043 voters were registered, of which 84.7% voters turned out to vote....
1919 election		Oswald Hawken Oswald Hawken Oswald James Hawken was a Reform Party Member of Parliament in New Zealand, and was a cabinet minister 1926-28 in the Reform Government.He was elected to the Egmont electorate in the 1919 general election, but was defeated in 1928.-References:...  (Reform New Zealand Reform Party The Reform Party, formally the New Zealand Political Reform League, was New Zealand's second major political party, having been founded as a conservative response to the original Liberal Party... )
1922 election New Zealand general election, 1922 The New Zealand general election of 1922 was held on Monday, 6 December in the Māori electorates, and on Tuesday, 7 December in the general electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 21st session of the New Zealand Parliament...
1925 election New Zealand general election, 1925 The New Zealand general election of 1925 was held 4 November to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 22nd session of the New Zealand Parliament...
1928 election New Zealand general election, 1928 The New Zealand general election of 1928 was held on Tuesday, 13 November in the Māori electorates, and on Wednesday, 14 November in the general electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 23rd session of the New Zealand Parliament...		Charles Anderson Wilkinson (2nd period; 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... )
1931 election New Zealand general election, 1931 The 1931 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 24th term. It resulted in the newly formed coalition between the United Party and the Reform Party remaining in office as the Liberal-Reform Government, although the opposition Labour...
1935 election New Zealand general election, 1935 The 1935 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 25th term. It resulted in the Labour Party's first electoral victory, with Michael Joseph Savage becoming the first Labour Prime Minister...
1938 election New Zealand general election, 1938 The 1938 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 26th term. It resulted in the governing Labour Party being re-elected, although the newly-founded National Party gained a certain amount of ground.-Background:The Labour Party had won...
1943 election New Zealand general election, 1943 The 1943 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 27th term. With the onset of World War II, elections were initially postponed, but it was eventually decided to hold a general election in September 1943, around two years after it...		Ernest Corbett Ernest Corbett Ernest Bowyer Corbett was a New Zealand National Party politician.He held the Egmont seat from 1943 to 1957. He was Minister of Māori Affairs, Minister of Lands and Minister of Forests in the First National Government...  (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:... )
1946 election New Zealand general election, 1946 The 1946 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 28th term. It saw the governing Labour Party re-elected, but by a substantially narrower margin than in the three previous elections...
1949 election New Zealand general election, 1949 The 1949 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 29th term. It saw the governing Labour Party defeated by the opposition National Party...
1951 election New Zealand general election, 1951 The 1951 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 30th term. It saw the governing National Party remain in office, increasing its lead over the opposition Labour Party.-Background:...
1954 election New Zealand general election, 1954 The 1954 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 31st term. It saw the governing National Party remain in office, but with a slightly reduced majority...
1957 election New Zealand general election, 1957 The 1957 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 32nd term. It saw the governing National Party narrowly defeated by the Labour Party...		William Sheat William Sheat William Alfred Sheat OBE was a New Zealand Member of Parliament for two Taranaki electorates.-Early life:Sheat was born in 1899. He attended Victoria University College and graduated B.A. in 1920 and LL.B. in 1923. He married Ella Marjorie Newtown, who is also a Victoria University College...  (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:... )
1960 election New Zealand general election, 1960 The 1960 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 33rd term. It saw the governing Labour Party defeated by the National Party, putting an end to the short second Labour government.-Background:...
1963 election New Zealand general election, 1963 The 1963 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 34th term. The results were almost identical to those for the previous election, and the governing National Party remained in office....
1966 election New Zealand general election, 1966 The 1966 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 35th term. It saw the governing National Party win a third consecutive term in office...		Venn Young Venn Young Venn Spearman Young was a New Zealand politician. He was a member of the National Party, and served as a Cabinet Minister in the government of Robert Muldoon. He is known for his failed attempt to legalise "homosexual acts" in 1975.-Early life:Young was born in Stratford, Taranaki...  (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:... )
1969 election New Zealand general election, 1969 The 1969 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament's 36th term. It saw the governing National Party win a fourth consecutive term, under Prime Minister Keith Holyoake.-The Election:...
1972 election New Zealand general election, 1972 The New Zealand general election of 1972 was held to elect MPs to the 37th session of the New Zealand Parliament. The Labour Party, led by Norman Kirk, defeated the governing National Party.-Background:...
1975 election New Zealand general election, 1975 The 1975 New Zealand general election was held to elect MPs to the 38th session of the New Zealand Parliament. It was the first election in New Zealand where 18-20 year olds and all permanent residents of New Zealand were eligible to vote, although only citizens were able to be...