City of Auckland by-election, 1893

City of Auckland by-election, 1893

4 August 1893

Turnout 3,020   Candidate Alfred Cadman William Lee Rees Party Liberal Liberal Popular vote 1,888 1,132

MP before election William Lee Rees Liberal Elected MP Alfred Cadman Liberal

The City of Auckland by-election of 1893 was a by-election held on 4 August 1893 during the 11th New Zealand Parliament in the urban upper North Island electorate of the City of Auckland.

Background

In 1893, William Lee Rees accused Alfred Cadman, the Member for Thames, of using his position as Minister for Native Affairs for his own personal benefit. Cadman then sued Rees for libel but the trial proved inconclusive. The jury in the libel case found that "the letters of Mr Rees to the Premier were defamatory, and that the defamatory matter was not only not fair and bona fide comment on the acts and conduct of the plantiff, but that it was not true", however they only awarded damages of £1 which "implied [Cadman's] acts and conduct were yet not above suspicion." ^[1]

On 11 July 1893 while in the debating chamber of New Zealand's parliament Cadman challenged Rees to vacate his seat and contest the subsequent by-election against him.^[2] Rees accepted the challenge although Cadman was ultimately successful.^[3][4]

Results

The following table gives the election results:

A by-election was later held in Thames for Cadman's newly vacant seat.

References

« (1853–1890) «   By-elections in New Zealand in the Liberal Party era (1891–1911)   » (1912–1938) »
11th Parliament	Northern Maori, 1891 Egmont, 1891 Newton, 1891 Te Aroha, 1891 Waikato, 1891 City of Christchurch, 1891 City of Wellington, 1892 Bruce, 1892 Rangitikei, 1892 Inangahua, 1893 Wanganui, 1893 Thames, 1893 City of Auckland, 1893
12th Parliament	Waitemata, 1894 Tuapeka, 1894 City of Auckland, 1895 City of Christchurch, 1896
13th Parliament	Suburbs of Wellington, 1897 Awarua, 1897 City of Dunedin, 1897 City of Wellington, 1898 Mataura, 1898 Tuapeka, 1898 City of Wellington, 1899
14th Parliament	Otaki, 1900 City of Auckland, 1900 Waihemo, 1900 Northern Maori, 1901 City of Christchurch, 1901 Patea, Jul 1901 Patea, Nov 1901 Caversham, 1901
15th Parliament	Pahiatua, 1904 City of Wellington, 1905
16th Parliament	Westland, 1906 Manukau, 1906 Taranaki, 1907 Tuapeka, 1908
17th Parliament	Thames, 1909 Northern Maori, 1909 Rangitikei, 1909 Auckland East, 1910 Christchurch North, 1911