Selwyn (New Zealand electorate)

Selwyn is a current electorate in the New Zealand House of Representatives, composed of towns on the outskirts of Christchurch city. The electorate was first formed for the 1866 election and has been abolished three times during its history. It was last re-established for the 2008 election and has since been held by Amy Adams for the National Party.

The 1941 census had been postponed due to World War II, so the 1946 electoral redistribution had to take ten years of population growth and movements into account. The North Island gained a further two electorates from the South Island due to faster population growth. The abolition of the country quota through the Electoral Amendment Act, 1945 reduced the number and increased the size of rural electorates. None of the existing electorates remained unchanged, 27 electorates were abolished, 19 electorates were created for the first time, and eight former electorates were re-established, including Selwyn.

The Selwyn electorate is the successor to the old electorate of Rakaia, which loses the town of Ashburton to Rangitata. In 2008, it contained the towns north of the Rakaia River and acquired the far western Bishopdale-Harewood area from Waimakariri and the Banks Peninsula town of Akaroa from the old Banks Peninsula electorate. The main towns in the seat were Templeton, Lincoln, Prebbleton, Tai Tapu, Leeston, Dunsandel, Darfield, Springfield and Arthur's Pass from Rakaia along with Halswell, Westmorland, and rural Banks Peninsula.

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