The 1987 New Zealand general election was a nationwide vote to determine the shape of the New Zealand Parliament. The governing New Zealand Labour Party, led by Prime Minister David Lange, was re-elected for a second term, although the Opposition National Party made gains. The election also saw the elimination of the Democratic Party (formerly known as the Social Credit Party) from Parliament, leaving Labour and National as the only parties with representation.

Preceded by:
1984 election 		New Zealand elections Followed by:
1990 election

Background

Before the election, the Labour Party (in government) held fifty-six seats, giving it an absolute majority in Parliament. The National Party (in opposition) held thirty-seven seats. The Democrats, a small party devoted to the principles of Social Credit, held two seats.

Of particular importance in the election were the economic reforms being undertaken by Roger Douglas, the Minister of Finance. These reforms, sometimes known as "Rogernomics", involved monetarist approaches to controlling inflation, the sale of state assets, and the removal of tariffs and subsidies. All these things were strongly opposed by many traditional Labour supporters, who saw them as a betrayal of the party's left-wing principles. Many commentators believed that public anger over Rogernomics could cost the government the election.

Another matter of importance, and perhaps one which enabled Labour to survive public disatisfaction, was the nuclear issue. In the previous parliamentary term, New Zealand had adopted legislation which prevented nuclear weapons or nuclear-powered ships entering New Zealand, a move which provoked an angry reaction from New Zealand's allies in the ANZUS treaty. The National Party intended to revoke the ban, but the New Zealand public were supportive of it. Labour's support for the ban is often considered to be an important factor in the party's re-election.

The election

The election was held on the 15th of August. 2,114,656 people were registered to vote in the elections. Turnout was 89.1%, somewhat lower than the previous election.

Summary of results

The 1987 election saw the Labour Party win fifty-seven seats in parliament, enough for it to retain its outright majority. Labour held one more seat than after the previous elections. The National Party won forty seats, an increase of three. It was possible for both parties to increase their number of seats partly due to the dissapearance of the Democrats and partly due to the increase in the total number of seats.

Although Labour emerged from the elections with a seventeen seat lead over National, the actual difference between each party's vote count was considerably smaller. Labour's share of the total vote was 48.0% (up from 43.0% at the last election), while National's was 44.0% (up from 35.5%). While Labour did retain its lead, the gap between Labour and National closed by a larger extent than the seat count would indicate.

The Democrats, despite winning 5.7% of the total vote, did not win any electorates, including the two which they had held before the election. The Democrats have not regained parliamentary represenation under their own name since losing it in these elections, although did manage to enter parliament as part of the larger Alliance.

The New Zealand Party, which had gained 12.2% of the vote in the previous election, performed poorly, gaining less that 0.1% support.

Detailed results

The table below displays data on the performance of all registered parties which submitted a party list. Parties are listed in order of the number of party votes they received.

Displayed on the table are:

Party Candidates Total votes Percentage Seats won

Labour Party 97 878,448 48.0% 59

National Party 97 806,305 44.0% 40

Democratic Party 97 105,091 5.7% -

Others 133 41,933 2.3% -

There were ninety-seven seats being contested in the 1987 elections, two more than were in the previous parliament. All of these seats (and thus all representation in parliament) were won by one of the two major parties.

The Labour Party, which was in government, won fifty-seven seats, giving it a majority. Most of the seats won by Labour were in urban areas, following the party's typical pattern. Labour was particularly strong in the Wellington region, where it won all ten urban seats. It was also strong in Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin, the other three urban centres, as well as smaller cities such as Hamilton, New Plymouth, Nelson, Napier, Hastings, and Palmerston North. Labour also retained its traditional dominance in the Maori seats, winning all four by large margins.

The National Party, also following its traditional patters, was strongest in rural areas, winning the vast majority of seats in these regions. The party's primary wins in urban areas were in Auckland, with the party taking six seats. The party also won a number of seats in smaller cities, such as Rotorua, Tauranga, Invercargill, and Whangarei. The party performed poorly in the Maori electorates, coming third in all four.

While no minor parties managed to win an electorate, several did manage to gain second place, outperforming one of the major parties but being defeated by the other. The Democrats (formerly Social Credit) was the strongest of the minor parties, placing second in five electorates. Two electorates, East Coast Bays and Pakuranga, were held by the Democrats prior to the election, but were narrowly lost to National candidates. In the other electorates (Coromandel, Rangitikei, and Wanganui), the Democrats were the challengers. In the four Maori electorates, the Mana Maori Movement gained second place. Its best result, 31.6%, was obtained in Northern Maori. The New Zealand Party also performed strongly in some electorates, although not as strongly as in the previous election.

Independent candidates did not perform well in the 1987 elections, with none of them winning a seat or even placing second.

MPs Elected in 1987 Papatoetoe:
Ross Robertson 		Titirangi:
Ralph Maxwell

Albany:
Don McKinnon 		Gisborne:
Allan Wallbank 		Maramarua:
Bill Birch 		Pencarrow:
Sonja Davies 		Tongariro:
Noel Scott

Ashburton:
Jenny Shipley 		Glenfield:
Judy Keall 		Marlborough:
Doug Kidd 		Porirua:
Graham Kelly 		Waikaremoana:
Roger McClay

Auckland Central:
Richard Prebble 		Hamilton East:
B Dillon 		Matamata:
John Luxton 		Raglan:
Simon Upton 		Waikato:
Rob Storey

Avon:
Larry Sutherland 		Hamilton West:
Trevor Mallard 		Miramar:
P Neilson 		Rangiora:
Jim Gerard 		Waipa:
Katherine O'Regan

Awarua:
Jeff Grant 		Hastings:
D J Butcher 		Mount Albert:
Helen Clark 		Rangitikei:
Dennis Marshall 		Wairarapa:
Wyatt Creech

Bay of Islands:
John Carter 		Hawkes Bay:
W D Sutton 		Napier:
Geoff Braybrooke 		Remuera:
Doug Graham 		Waitaki:
Jim Sutton

Birkenhead:
Jenny Kirk 		Heretaunga:
Bill Jeffries 		Nelson:
Philip Woollaston 		Roskill:
Phil Goff 		Waitotara:
Venn Young

Christchurch Central:
Geoffrey Palmer 		Hobson:
Ross Meurant 		New Lynn:
Jonathan Hunt 		Rotorua:
Paul East 		Wallace:
D A Angus

Christchurch North:
Mike Moore 		Horowhenua:
Annette King 		New Plymouth:
Harry Duynhoven 		St Albans:
David Caygill 		Wanganui:
Russell Marshall

Clevedon:
Warren Kyd 		Invercargill:
Rob Munro 		North Shore:
George Gair 		St Kilda:
Michael Cullen

 Wellington Central:
Fran Wilde

Clutha:
Robin Gray 		Island Bay:
Elizabeth Tennet 		Ohariu:
Peter Dunne 		Selwyn:
Ruth Richardson 		West Auckland:
Jack Elder

Coromandel:
Graeme Lee 		Kaimai:
R A Anderson 		Onehunga:
Fred Gerbic 		Sydenham:
Jim Anderton 		West Coast:
Thomas Burke

Dunedin North:
Stan Rodger 		Kaipara:
Lockwood Smith 		Otago:
Warren Cooper 		Tamaki:
Robert Muldoon 		Western Hutt:
John Terris

Dunedin West:
Clive Matthewson 		Kapiti:
Margaret Shields 		Otara:
Colin Moyle 		Taranaki:
Roger Maxwell 		Whangarei:
John Banks

East Cape:
Anne Fraser 		King Country:
Jim Bolger 		Pahiatua:
James Falloon 		Tarawera:
Ian McLean 		Yaldhurst:
Margaret Austin

East Coast Bays:
Murray McCully 		Lyttelton:
P A Simpson 		Pakuranga:
Maurice Williamson 		Tasman:
Ken Shirley 		Eastern Maori:
Peter Tapsell

Eastern Hutt:
T J Young 		Manawatu:
D J Robinson 		Palmerston North:
Trevor De Cleene 		Tauranga:
Winston Peters 		Northern Maori:
Bruce Gregory

Eden:
Richard Northey 		Mangere:
David Lange 		Panmure:
Bob Tizard 		Te Atatu:
Michael Bassett 		Southern Maori:
Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan

Fendalton:
Philip Burdon 		Manurewa:
Roger Douglas 		Papakura:
Merv Wellington 		Timaru:
Maurice McTigue 		Western Maori:
Koro Wetere