1918 Wellington South by-election

The Wellington South by-election of 1918 was a by-election held in the Wellington South electorate during the 19th New Zealand Parliament, on 19 December 1918. It was caused by the death of incumbent MP Alfred Hindmarsh,^[1] the leader of the Labour Party and was won by fellow party member Bob Semple with a majority of 1,231.^[2]

1918 Wellington South by-election

← 1914 general 19 December 1918 (1918-12-19) 1919 general →
Turnout	3,990
Candidate Bob Semple George Frost Party Labour Reform Popular vote 2,412 1,181 Percentage 60.45% 29.59%
Member before election Alfred Hindmarsh Labour Elected Member Bob Semple Labour

Background

Bob Semple, a miners agent who was previously the organiser of the New Zealand Federation of Labour, was selected as the Labour Party candidate. The nomination was subject of much interest. The unsuccessful aspirants were Tom Brindle, Alec Monteith, John Read, Michael Reardon and Tom Young.^[3]

Two Wellington City Councillors also stood as candidates. George Frost and John Castle offered themselves to the electorate, with Frost being endorsed by the Reform Party.

Results

The following table gives the election results:

1918 Wellington South by-election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Bob Semple	2,412	60.45
	Reform	George Frost[4]	1,181	29.60
	Independent	John Castle[4]	397	9.95
Majority			1,231	30.85
Turnout			3,990

References

1. "By-election Results". The New Zealand Herald. Vol. LV, no. 17038. 20 December 1918. p. 4. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
2. Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First published in 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. p. 233. OCLC 154283103.
3. "By-election". New Zealand Times. Vol. XLIII, no. 10147. 9 December 1918. p. 4. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
4. "By-Elections". The Press. Vol. LIV, no. 16391. 10 December 1918. p. 7. Retrieved 24 December 2015.