1874 Wellington City mayoral election

The 1874 Wellington City mayoral election was the first election for the Mayor of Wellington to be conducted by public vote. The election was won by William Sefton Moorhouse, who defeated former mayor Joseph Dransfield.

1874 Wellington mayoral election

← 1842 17 December 1874 1875 →
Turnout1,516
 
Candidate William Sefton Moorhouse Joe Dransfield
Party Independent Independent
Popular vote 1,009 507
Percentage 66.55 33.46

Mayor before election

Charles Borlase

Elected mayor

William Sefton Moorhouse

Background

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Prior conventions dictated that Wellington's mayors were chosen by the city councillors from amongst themselves. In December 1874 an election open to the voting public was held with the intention of ratepayers selecting who would occupy the office of mayor for the 1875 term.[1] The election was held on 17 December and saw William Sefton Moorhouse defeat Joe Dransfield by a 2 to 1 vote margin.

Election results

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The following table gives the election results:

1874 Wellington mayoral election[2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent William Sefton Moorhouse 1,009 66.55
Independent Joe Dransfield 507 33.46
Majority 502 33.11
Turnout 1,516

Notes

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  1. ^ Betts 1970, pp. 36.
  2. ^ "The Election of Mayor". The New Zealand Times. Vol. XXIX, no. 4290. 19 December 1874. p. 3. Retrieved 17 March 2019.

References

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