New Zealand general election, 1963

← 1960

30 November 1963 (1963-11-30)

1966 →

All 80 seats in the New Zealand Parliament
41 seats were needed for a majority

Turnout

1,196,631 (89.6%)

	First party	Second party

Leader	Keith Holyoake	Arnold Nordmeyer
Party	National	Labour
Leader since	1957	1963
Leader's seat	Pahiatua	Island Bay
Last election	46 seats, 47.6%	34 seats, 43.4%
Seats won	45	35
Seat change	1	1
Popular vote	563,875	524,066
Percentage	47.1%	43.7%
Swing	0.5%	0.6%

Prime Minister before election

Keith Holyoake
National

Elected Prime Minister

Keith Holyoake
National

The 1963 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of New Zealand Parliament's 34th term. The results were almost identical to those of the previous election, and the governing National Party remained in office.

The 1960 election had been won by the National Party, beginning New Zealand's second period of National government. Keith Holyoake, who had briefly been Prime Minister at the end of the first period, returned to office. The elderly leader of the Labour Party, Walter Nash, had agreed to step down following his government's defeat, but disliked the prospect of being succeeded by his Minister of Finance, Arnold Nordmeyer. Nash instead backed first Clarence (Gerry) Skinner and then, after Skinner's death, Fred Hackett. In the end, however, Nordmeyer was victorious. Nordmeyer, however, was unpopular with the general public, being remembered with hostility for the tax hikes in his so-called 'Black Budget'. Labour struggled to overcome this negative perception of its leader, and was only partially successful.

There had been an unusually large number of by-elections during the term of the 33rd Parliament. None of these had resulted in any upsets, and there was little indication for the population wanting a change. Holyoake started his election campaign on 4 November, not even a month out from the election. Whilst television had just been introduced in New Zealand, the election campaign was a dull affair. And from 23 November, the Assassination of John F. Kennedy was the dominant topic in the media.

...
Wikipedia