The1951 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of theNew Zealand Parliament's30th term. TheFirst National Government was re-elected, with theNational Party increasing its parliamentary majority over the oppositionLabour Party. This was the last time until the2020 election that a party was elected to majority government of New Zealand by receiving a majority of the vote.
TheNational Party had formed its first administration after the1949 elections, in which it had ended four terms of government by theLabour Party.[1] The National government, withSidney Holland asPrime Minister, had undertaken a number of economic and constitutional reforms, although it had not seriously modified the newsocial welfare system which Labour had introduced. Labour's leader,Peter Fraser, had died in December 1950 after a long period of poor health, and had been replaced in January 1951 byWalter Nash. Nash had beenMinister of Finance for the duration of the first Labour government.[2]
The most significant issue in the 1951 elections was the growing industrial unrest of the time, particularly the ongoingdockworkers dispute. Holland condemned the strikers, calling the situation "industrial anarchy". The Labour Party, under Nash, attempted to take a moderate position in the dispute, but ended up displeasing both sides. Holland, seeking a mandate to respond strongly to the strike, called asnap election. Another issue was high inflation, which frustrated voters and without the distraction of the strike, might have threatened Holland's government at the scheduled election for 1952.[3]
The date for the main 1951 elections was 1 September, and for the first time, elections to the fourMaori seats were held on the same day.[4] The 1951 elections were also the first under the new regulations which required elections to be held on a Saturday. 1,205,762 people were registered to vote, andturnout was 89.1%.[5] The number of seats being contested was 80, a number which had been fixed since 1902.[6]
The 1951 election saw the governingNational Party re-elected with a twenty-seat margin, a substantial improvement on the twelve-seat margin it previously held. National won fifty seats compared with theLabour Party's thirty.[6] The popular vote was closer, however, with National winning 54% to Labour's 46%.[7] No seats were won by minor party candidates or by independents.[8] No party then captured a majority of the vote until the 2020 election, when Labour won 50.01%.[7]
Norton, Clifford (1988).New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946–1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science. Wellington: Victoria University of Wellington.ISBN0-475-11200-8.
Wilson, Jim (1985) [First ed. published 1913].New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer.OCLC154283103.
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