The Country Party of New Zealand was a political party which appealed to rural voters. It was represented in Parliament from 1928 to 1938. Its policies were a mixture of rural advocacy and social credit theory.
History
The Country Party had its origins in the Auckland Farmers' Union, a branch of the New Zealand Farmers' Union which covered the old Auckland Province. Members of the branch increasingly came to believe that the Reform Party, which traditionally enjoyed much support in rural areas, was now putting the interests of farmers behind those of businesses in the city. The Auckland branch was also strongly influenced by the social credit theory of monetary reform, promoted by C. H. Douglas. Many farmers believed that the country's financial system did not treat them fairly and that they were being exploited by big-city bankers and moneylenders.
The Auckland branch grew increasingly frustrated with the Farmers' Union leadership, which did not support having an independent rural party. Eventually, members of the Auckland branch established the Country Party without the Union's backing. In 1928, the branch broke away from the Union altogether and gave its full backing to the Country Party.
Electoral results
thumb|180px|Harold Rushworth, party leader and MP, 1928-38.
{| class=wikitable
|-
! Election
! Candidates
! # of seats won
! Total votes
! % of popular vote
|-
! 1925
|
|
|
|
|-
! 1928
|
|
|
|
|-
! 1931
|
|
|
|
|-
! 1935
|
|
|
|
|-
! 1938
|
|
|
|
|-
! 1969
|
|
|
|
|}
Electorate results
1925 general election
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
! Electorate !! Candidate !! Votes !! %
|-
| Bay of Islands || Hugh Sweeny || 1,424 || 19.0%
|-
| Raglan || Robert Duxfield || 222 || 3.1%
|-
| Rotorua || Frank Colbeck || 204 || 2.8%
|-
| Thames || Alexander Ross || 409 || 5.4%
|-
| Waikato || F. C. S. Lawson || 139 ||2.0%
|}
1928 general election
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
! Electorate !! Candidate !! Votes !! %
|-
| Bay of Islands || Harold Rushworth || 3,820 || 47.8%
|-
| Franklin || Harry Mellsop || 3,821 || 49.2%
|-
| Rotorua || S. H. Judd || 624 || 7.5%
|-
| Tauranga || Frank Colbeck || 1,758 || 23.0%
|-
| Waikato || P. Keegan || 1,897 ||24.4%
|}
1931 general election
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
! Electorate !! Candidate !! Votes !! %
|-
| Bay of Islands || Harold Rushworth || 4,970 || 56.9%
|-
| Franklin || Harry Mellsop || 2,511 || 32.4%
|-
| Kaipara || Albert Robinson || 2,924 || 36.9%
|-
| Rotorua || D. R. F. Campbell || 1,411 || 15.0%
|-
| Tauranga || Frank Colbeck || 1,803 || 24.2%
|-
| Waikato || Solomon Ziman || 3.091 ||43.2%
|}
1935 general election
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
! Electorate !! Candidate !! Votes !! %
|-
| Bay of Islands || Harold Rushworth || 6,004 || 59.4%
|-
| Franklin || Arthur Sexton || 4,803 || 51.4%
|-
| Tauranga || Alexander Ross || 2,243 || 21.8%
|-
| Waikato || Solomon Ziman || 1,221 ||12.6%
|-
| Waitomo || J. H. Penniket || 2,431 || 23.7%
|}
1938 general election
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
! Electorate !! Candidate !! Votes !! %
|-
| Eden || Albert Robinson || 155 || 1.0%
|-
| Franklin || Arthur Sexton || 1,564 || 14.8%
|-
| Kaipara || James Scott-Davidson || 257 || 2.7%
|-
| Raglan || Albert James Gallichan || 115 || 1.2%
|-
| Tauranga || H. C. Barker || 78 || 0.7%
|}
By-elections
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
! By-election !! Candidate !! Votes !! %
|-
| Raglan, 1927 || Cornelius Augustus Magner || 532 || 8.8%
|-
| Bay of Islands, 1929 || Harold Rushworth || 4,385 || 52.9%
|-
| Hauraki, 1931 || Alexander Ross || 513 || 6.3%
|}