1895 City of Auckland by-election

The City of Auckland by-election of 1895 was a by-election held on 24 July 1895 during the 12th New Zealand Parliament in the urban seat of the City of Auckland.

1895 City of Auckland by-election

24 July 1895
Turnout	9,063
Candidate Thomas Thompson Richard Monk Party Liberal Conservative Popular vote 5,528 3,535 Percentage 60.99 39.01
MP before election George Grey Independent Elected MP Thomas Thompson Liberal

The contest was won by Thomas Thompson of the Liberal Party. Thompson convincingly beat the conservative candidate Richard Monk recording nearly a two thousand vote majority.[1]

Background

The by-election was triggered due to the resignation of sitting MP George Grey.[2] Thomas Thompson was the Liberal Party candidate. He had previously represented the Auckland North electorate from 1884 to 1890, then the City of Auckland electorate from 1890 to 1893.[3] His sole opponent was Richard Monk, previous Waitemata MP from 1886 to 1890, then from 1893 to 9 February 1894 when his election was declared void.[4]

Results

The following table gives the election results:

1895 City of Auckland by-election[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Thomas Thompson	5,528	60.99
	Conservative	Richard Monk	3,535	39.01
Majority			1,993	21.99
Turnout			9,063

Thompson represented the seat until he retired as an MP in 1899.[3] In 1903 he was elevated to sit in the Legislative Council until his term ended on 17 March 1917.[5]

Notes

1. "Decisive Victory for Mr Thompson". Fielding Star. XVII (22). 25 July 1895. p. 2. Retrieved 4 April 2016.
2. Sinclair, Keith (7 April 2006). "Grey, George 1812–1898". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
3. Wilson 1985, p. 240.
4. Wilson 1985, p. 220.
5. Wilson 1985, p. 165.

References

• Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.