Taupō (New Zealand electorate)

Taupō (before 2008 styled as Taupo with no macron) is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate returning one Member of Parliament to the House of Representatives. Taupo first existed between 1963 and 1981, and was recreated for the introduction of MMP in 1996. The current MP for Taupō is Louise Upston of the National Party. She has held this position since 2008.

The Taupō electorate is based on the central North Island communities around Lake Taupō and the South Waikato District, including Turangi, Taupō, Tokoroa, Putaruru, Tirau, and Cambridge.

In 2013, one quarter (24.9%) of people in the Taupō electorate belonged to the Māori ethnic group – the sixth-highest share in New Zealand. The proportions of those working in the electricity, gas, water and waste services industry (1.3%), the accommodation, cafe, and restaurant industry (7.5%), and in arts and recreation services (2.4%), were well above the national average.

The Taupo electorate was first created for the 1963 election and it existed until 1981. The former electorate was much smaller than the current one, since it did not contain the western side of Lake Taupō, nor Cambridge, nor the Ruapehu towns. It was a marginal seat and frequently changed between National and Labour.

The current Taupō electorate was created ahead of the introduction to mixed-member proportional (MMP) voting in 1996. It is a merger of the old marginal seat of Tongariro with the western half of the safe National seat of Waikaremoana. Prior to the 2008 election, the electorate pulled south to take in the northern and western parts of Ruapehu District.

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