Rex Kirton

Rex Stratton Kirton QSO JP is a New Zealand local-body politician in the Wellington Region. He was mayor of Upper Hutt for 24 years until 2001, and then served three terms on the Greater Wellington Regional Council.

Biography

Kirton attended St. Patrick's College, Silverstream 1955–1959. He lives in Whitemans Valley.[1]

Local government

Kirton was first elected mayor of Upper Hutt in 1977. When he retired from this role in 2001, he was the longest-serving mayor in New Zealand at that time.[2][3][4] In 2001, Kirton stood as the Upper Hutt representative on the Wellington Regional Council. He served three terms until 2010 when he was beaten by Paul Swain.[5] Swain and Kirton received 5,117 and 3,794 votes, respectively, with two other candidates contesting the election.[1] In 2007, he had been returned unopposed.[6] He was chairman of the regional council's parks, forests and utilities committee.[7]

In 1990, Kirton received the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.[8] In the 1997 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Companion of the Queen's Service Order, for public services.[9] Kirton Drive, the main street in the suburb of Riverstone Terraces, is named after him.[10]

References
  1. "Rex Kirton". Elections 2010. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
  2. "History of Our City : Mayors". Upper Hutt City Council. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2011.
  3. "Deputy mayor takes Wellington". TV One. 13 October 2001. Retrieved 15 October 2011.
  4. "Rex Kirton Not Seeking Re-Election". scoop.co.nz. 2006. Retrieved 24 October 2011. Mayor Rex Kirton announced today that he will not be seeking re-election for a ninth term as Mayor of Upper Hutt. He is currently the longest-serving mayor in New Zealand. Mr Kirton was first elected to the Upper Hutt City Council as a Councillor in 1974, and then successfully stood for Mayor in 1977.
  5. Williams, Colin (12 October 2010). "Swain wins Kirton's seat". Upper Hutt Leader. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
  6. "Greater Wellington Regional Council - Upper Hutt Constituency". Elections 2010. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
  7. "Wind turbine ban for Battle Hill". The Dominion Post. 23 January 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2011.
  8. Taylor, Alister; Coddington, Deborah (1994). Honoured by the Queen – New Zealand. Auckland: New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa. p. 218. ISBN 0-908578-34-2.
  9. "New Year honours list 1997". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 1996. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  10. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 February 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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