1994 Selwyn by-election

The Selwyn by-election, a by-election in the New Zealand electorate of Selwyn – a predominantly rural district in the Canterbury Plains in New Zealand's South Island – took place on 13 August 1994. The previous sitting MP, Ruth Richardson, precipitated the poll by resigning from parliament. Richardson planned to retire from politics, having been removed as Minister of Finance the previous year.

1994 Selwyn by-election
13 August 1994 (1994-08-13)
Turnout21,052
  First party Second party
 
All
Candidate David Carter John Wright
Party National Alliance
Popular vote 8,906 8,488
Percentage 42.32% 40.34%
  Third party Fourth party
 
Candidate Marian Hobbs Tim Shadbolt
Party Labour NZ First
Popular vote 2,173 1,165
Percentage 10.33% 5.54%
Member before election

Ruth Richardson
National

 Elected Member

David Carter
National

Background

The by-election was significant, as National held on to the majority of the House of Representatives by only one seat (50 to 49). This meant the party would have lost its majority in the House if it failed to retain the seat, and it would have required the formation of a coalition or a confidence-and-supply agreement with another parliamentary party – probably New Zealand First or the Alliance – to maintain governance.

All "major" New Zealand political parties of the day contested the by-election. David Carter, the National Party candidate, won the seat, and therefore the distribution of seats in Parliament did not change . In second place, and only around four hundred votes behind Carter, came the Alliance's John Wright, in a result that surprised many commentators. National's traditional opponent, the Labour Party, placed a distant third. The fourth "major" candidate represented the New Zealand First party: Tim Shadbolt, then Mayor of Invercargill.[1]

Results

The following table shows the official results as published by the Electoral Commission.[1]

1994 Selwyn by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National David Carter 8,906 42.32
Alliance John Wright 8,488 40.33
Labour Marian Hobbs 2,173 10.33
NZ First Tim Shadbolt 1,165 5.54
Christian Heritage Rosemary Francis 182 0.86
NORML Warren Bryson 39 0.19
Kiwis Against Further Immigration Bruce Annan 29 0.14
McGillicuddy Serious Tim Owens 26 0.12
Natural Law Warwick Jones 22 0.10
NZ Coalition Kieron Daok 10 0.05
Christ's Ambassadors Union Victor Bryer 2 0.01
Majority 418 1.99
Turnout 21,042

References
  1. "Part XIV – Selwyn By-election" (PDF). Electoral Commission. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
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