Ambitious Gisborne women

CELEBRATING WOMEN'S SUFFRAGE: Tairawhiti Museum director Eloise Wallace with items from the Ambitious Gisborne Women exhibition, which runs to March 3. Picture by Rebecca Grunwell

Researcher Jean Johnston shares some of her research into the historic events of 1893 when Gisborne women celebrated their enfranchisement and mobilised other women to cast their ballot. This is an excerpt of some of her research. Mrs Johnston acknowledges “the rich information” in the reporting of events in the archives of the Poverty Bay Herald.

On a fine November 28 day in 1893 the women of the Waiapu electorate went to the polls for the first time.

There were clear instructions outlined in the previous day’s Poverty Bay Herald, and at nine o’clock there was a small crowd of men and women waiting outside the two main polling booths in town.

People whose surname initial was from A to M had been instructed to vote in the Resident Magistrate’s Courthouse while those with surnames N to Z were to vote in Macfarlane’s Hall in Customhouse Street.

There was great interest throughout the electorate in the contest for the Waiapu seat between Liberal party candidate Mr James Carroll and Mr Cecil Albert DeLautour, who supported aspects of the Liberal party manifesto but was standing as an independent.

It was reported the ladies of the district freely availed themselves of their newly-obtained privileges, entering into the campaign and promoting their favourite candidate.

Gisborne Cabs was busy running electors to the booths and the advice from Mayor John Townley to vote early was accepted, as most women had voted by the end of the morning.

“Those who asserted a few months ago that if women got the vote they would not exercise it had their words disproved today, for the women rolled up to a ‘man’.

‘‘Very few whose names are on the roll will have omitted to record their votes, and they voted intelligently as most men, betraying but very little nervousness . . . it was noticeable that a large number of babies were taken to the poll.” (Poverty Bay Herald November 29, 1893)

A crowd began to gather near the balcony of the Masonic Hotel where a board was erected to show results as these came in. Gaslights illuminated the street corner throughout the evening.

At 6.30pm, results began to arrive by telegraphic means — first from Tokomaru, 39 votes for Carroll, 16 for DeLautour — quickly followed by Patutahi, Waipiro and Pakarae.

At 8pm, Mr W. A. Barton, the returning officer, announced the votes from the two town booths declared in favour of Mr Carroll by 38 votes.

Other votes from the Waiapu booths continued to increase his majority.

By 9pm, he had been declared the new Member of Parliament for Waiapu and this would be formally confirmed on December 5 with his 2201 votes to Mr DeLautour’s 1704.

Maori women voting for the Eastern Maori electorate did not place their votes until December 20 and by January 8, 1894, local candidate Wi Pere was declared as the representative for the Eastern Maori seat.

Like Mr Carroll, he had previously voted against women moving towards suffrage.

In his speech on the balcony on the evening of November 28, Mr Carroll paid special tribute to the work performed by the “ladies”.

“If any evidence was required as to their ability to control themselves and to exercise intelligently electoral privileges, they had it today.”

While disappointed, Mr DeLautour also spoke and was received with great cheering.

It was reported that there was good humour throughout but as the night wore on a number of men under the influence of liquor became somewhat uproarious, and some fisticuffs occurred in the streets.

A few days later, a letter to the editor in the Poverty Bay Herald, signed by “A Strong-Minded Woman” stated: ‘‘I am very glad that the women’s franchise has not proved to be a failure in other towns of New Zealand, as it has in Gisborne. I voted for Mr DeLautour and did not allow myself to be turned by any soft-soaping.’’

What soft-soaping could she be referring too?

Prior to votes being cast a lively interchange in political debates was recorded in the Poverty Bay Herald.

Perhaps she was referring to these.

On September 11, 1893, newspapers throughout the country reported that so sure had the government been that the Electoral Bill would not succeed that it had not been prepared.

It was expected that town dwelling women and women employed in factories would be able to organise and register to vote before November 28, but that many country women may not do so in such a short space of time.

However, Gisborne women were prepared to act quickly within a few days of the passing of the Electoral Bill on September 19, which gave Maori and Pakeha women, over the age of 21, the right to vote in national elections.

Women of Aotearoa celebrated not only its enfranchisement and the major advance towards equality in citizenship, but also the chance to influence society.

A count made of the women enrolled in the 1893 general Waiapu electoral roll reveals 1913 names.

Around the country, 109,461 women, or 84 percent of the adult female population, enrolled to vote.

The voting returns for the 1893 general election indicate Maori women’s political awareness and ability to organise quickly.

In 1890, when it is believed that the total Maori population was just under 42,000, 7086 Maori men voted; in 1893 from a similar size population, the total Maori vote rose to 11,269, indicating that about 4000 women had registered and voted.

There is no electoral roll record of the names voting for the Eastern Maori seat.

The Waiapu electorate (Cape Runaway to Napier) was abolished in 1908 and split between the Bay of Plenty electorate and the new Gisborne electorate.