Waitotara (New Zealand electorate)

Waitotara was a New Zealand parliamentary electorate in South Taranaki. It existed from 1881 to 1893, and again from 1978 to 1996. It was represented by four Members of Parliament.

The previous electoral redistribution was undertaken in 1875 for the 1875–76 election. In the six years since, New Zealand's European population had increased by 65%. In the 1881 electoral redistribution, the House of Representatives increased the number of European representatives to 91 (up from 84 since the 1875–76 election). The number of Māori electorates was held at four. The House further decided that electorates should not have more than one representative, which led to 35 new electorates being formed, including Waitotara, and two electorates that had previously been abolished to be recreated. This necessitated a major disruption to existing boundaries.

The electorate was rural, in South Taranaki. It was based on the town of Waitotara, and is north of the city of Wanganui. Its original area was bounded by Egmont and Taranaki in the west, Waipa in the north, and Rangitikei in the east. It bordered onto the South Taranaki Bight and went around the Wanganui electorate. It included the towns of Patea, Pipiriki, Raetihi, and Ohakune.

The electorate existed in the 19th century from 1881 to 1893. It was represented by John Bryce from 1881 to 1887, and then by George Hutchison from 1887 to 1893.

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