Published on April 24, 2022 at 16:46
1872 ElectionThe 1874 General Election was the third election to the Ivonian Parliament. The incumbent Government, led by Arthur Whitaker of the Dominion Party, sought to defend their one seat majority against the Country Party. The two previous two elections had led to the party losing the popular vote forming government - to date no government had been elected with a plurality or majority of the vote.
The two years since the the 1872 General Election had seen the Dominion Party govern Ivonia. Arthur Cartwright had fought the previous campaign on the issue of high food prices caused by the Country Party tariffs. His government had removed these tariffs, thereby neutralizing this issue by the time of the 1874 campaign in November of that year. It was felt by a substantial section of the population, however, that the Dominion Party's term in power had been rudderless, without a particular purpose. This was evident in the government's actions; or rather, the general lack of them. The Cartwright Ministry mostly focused on governance itself without focusing on new initiatives or development. This was reflected in the popular opinion - the Whitaker Herald published a survey on the eve of the 1874 campaign indicating that only 49% of voters approved of the Dominion Party - a loss of nearly ten percentage points during the two year legislative term. This compared poorly to the Country Party's 62% support on the eve of the campaign, a marginal improvement over the survey result from two years prior.
The Country Party, keen to return to power, made the development of the areas further from the cities a focus of their campaign. Joseph Bissett, seeking a return to the Premiership, made a promise to build a national railway to connect the rural areas to the global export markets via the nation's ports. This large promise stood in stark contrast to the generally empty list of promises made by the Dominion Party.
Arthur Cartwright went to the Governor-General on November 9, 1874 seeking the dissolution of Parliament. This was granted, with the date of the election set for December 16, 1874.
The results were an outright disaster for the Dominion Party. On a nationwide swing of 4.86%, they lost government by a clear margin after securing only 45% of the popular vote. Joseph Bissett was therefore returned to the Premiership after a short, two-year wait.
A simple nationwide swing of 4.86% would have been sufficient to deliver a clear majority to the Country Party, but provincial variations in the swing proved to be devastating to the Dominion Party. The Dominion Party suffered a massive 6.9% swing in New Anglia to clearly lose the seat, leaving it with a comfortable 5.6% margin. This was folowed up by a large 5.4% swing in North Bay, securing one seat for the Country Party; a 4.9% swing in South Yorkshire and 5.2% swing in Southshore which delivered a clean sweep of all eight seats in those two provinces to the Country Party; and finally, a smaller 3.6% swing in Westmoreland which delivered another gain for the Country Party.
The Prime Minister, Arthur Cartwright, was defeated in his own seat of Whitaker Centre after suffering a massive 6.4% swing against him. A number of ultra marginal seats were left in the aftermath of the Dominion Party's destruction - East North Bay on a margin of 0.2% or 561 votes, Princeton East on a margin of 0.9% or 1728 votes, Westgate Outer on a margin of 0.4% or 945 votes, and the nation's closest seat of Princeton West on a margin of 0.19% or 364 votes.
All in all, the Country Party won a decisive victory in 14 of the 15 parliamentary constituencies, with only the ultra-safe Dominion seat of West North Bay left in opposition hands. Arthur Cartwright conceded early on election night that he had lost the premiership - so early, in fact, that he did not yet know that he had lost his own seat. Faced with a crushing defeat, and himself booted out of Parliament, Cartwright resigned from the leadership of the Dominion Party on Wednesday, December 18, 1874. The second Bissett Ministry was sworn in on the same day and faced Parliament on Dcember 20th.
With a decisive margin of victory under his belt, Joseph Bissett had total rein to do as he pleased. He soon set about to fulfill his pre-election promises regarding the national railway system, as well as electoral reform and redistribution following the upcoming 1875 census.
| Party | Votes | Votes % | Seats | Seats % | Votes Δ | Votes % Δ | Seats Δ | Seats % Δ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 874,468 | 55.01% | 14 | 93.33% | 77,493 | 4.86% | 7 | 46.67% |
| Dominion | 715,084 | 44.99% | 1 | 6.67% | -77,083 | -4.86% | -7 | -46.67% |
| Seat | Winner | Previous Winner | Swing Required | Two-Party Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East North Bay | Country | Dominion | 6.47% | 6.68% |
| Fort William | Country | Dominion | 1.23% | 6.86% |
| Princeton East | Country | Dominion | 3.89% | 4.83% |
| Princeton West | Country | Dominion | 4.62% | 4.81% |
| Westgate Outer | Country | Dominion | 8.87% | 9.28% |
| Whitaker Centre | Country | Dominion | 4.10% | 6.43% |
| Whitaker Gate | Country | Dominion | 6.31% | 8.62% |
| Seat | Province | Current Holder | Raw Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| West North Bay | North Bay | Dominion | 19.18% |
| Seat | Province | Current Holder | Raw Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| Princeton West | South Yorkshire | Country | 0.38% |
| East North Bay | North Bay | Country | 0.42% |
| Westgate Outer | Westmoreland | Country | 0.83% |
| Princeton East | South Yorkshire | Country | 1.88% |
| Whitaker Gate | Southshore | Country | 4.64% |
| Whitaker Centre | Southshore | Country | 4.66% |
| Fort William | New Anglia | Country | 11.25% |
| Westgate Centre | Westmoreland | Country | 11.71% |
| South York | South Yorkshire | Country | 16.83% |
| Upper Coast | Westmoreland | Country | 20.97% |
| Sedgwick | Southshore | Country | 21.07% |
| Port Henry | Westmoreland | Country | 23.01% |
| South Coast | Southshore | Country | 28.23% |
| South Country | Southshore | Country | 28.43% |
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 70,588 | 55.63% | 61,885 | 48.77% | 6.86% |
| Dominion* | 56,308 | 44.37% | 65,010 | 51.23% | -6.86% |
The Country Party won the seat of Fort William, after winning 55.63% of the vote. They gained the seat from the Dominion Party after a two-party swing of 6.86%. This was enough to exceed the required two-party swing of 1.23%; the seat now sits on a raw margin of 11.25%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 66,798 | 50.21% | 57,908 | 43.53% | 6.68% |
| Dominion* | 66,237 | 49.79% | 75,121 | 56.47% | -6.68% |
The Country Party won the seat of East North Bay, after winning 50.21% of the vote. They gained the seat from the Dominion Party after a two-party swing of 6.68%. This was enough to exceed the required two-party swing of 6.47%; the seat now sits on a raw margin of 0.42%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dominion* | 67,297 | 59.59% | 71,719 | 63.51% | -3.92% |
| Country | 45,633 | 40.41% | 41,209 | 36.49% | 3.92% |
The Dominion Party won the seat of West North Bay, after winning 59.59% of the vote. They held the seat despite a fall in their share of the vote by 3.92%. The seat now sits on a raw margin of 19.18%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 46,775 | 50.94% | 42,338 | 46.11% | 4.83% |
| Dominion* | 45,047 | 49.06% | 49,485 | 53.89% | -4.83% |
The Country Party won the seat of Princeton East, after winning 50.94% of the vote. They gained the seat from the Dominion Party after a two-party swing of 4.83%. This was enough to exceed the required two-party swing of 3.89%; the seat now sits on a raw margin of 1.88%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 47,633 | 50.19% | 43,067 | 45.38% | 4.81% |
| Dominion* | 47,269 | 49.81% | 51,835 | 54.62% | -4.81% |
The Country Party won the seat of Princeton West, after winning 50.19% of the vote. They gained the seat from the Dominion Party after a two-party swing of 4.81%. This was enough to exceed the required two-party swing of 4.62%; the seat now sits on a raw margin of 0.38%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country* | 63,510 | 58.42% | 58,131 | 53.47% | 4.95% |
| Dominion | 45,212 | 41.58% | 50,593 | 46.53% | -4.95% |
The Country Party won the seat of South York, after winning 58.42% of the vote. They held the seat and saw their share of the vote increase by 4.95%. The seat now sits on a raw margin of 16.83%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country* | 76,882 | 60.53% | 73,159 | 57.85% | 2.69% |
| Dominion | 50,125 | 39.47% | 53,313 | 42.15% | -2.69% |
The Country Party won the seat of Sedgwick, after winning 60.53% of the vote. They held the seat and saw their share of the vote increase by 2.69%. The seat now sits on a raw margin of 21.07%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country* | 45,776 | 64.11% | 43,763 | 61.29% | 2.82% |
| Dominion | 25,621 | 35.89% | 27,638 | 38.71% | -2.82% |
The Country Party won the seat of South Coast, after winning 64.11% of the vote. They held the seat and saw their share of the vote increase by 2.82%. The seat now sits on a raw margin of 28.23%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country* | 64,786 | 64.22% | 59,307 | 58.61% | 5.61% |
| Dominion | 36,101 | 35.78% | 41,882 | 41.39% | -5.61% |
The Country Party won the seat of South Country, after winning 64.22% of the vote. They held the seat and saw their share of the vote increase by 5.61%. The seat now sits on a raw margin of 28.43%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 43,604 | 52.33% | 38,167 | 45.90% | 6.43% |
| Dominion* | 39,719 | 47.67% | 44,981 | 54.10% | -6.43% |
The Country Party won the seat of Whitaker Centre, after winning 52.33% of the vote. They gained the seat from the Dominion Party after a two-party swing of 6.43%. This was enough to exceed the required two-party swing of 4.10%; the seat now sits on a raw margin of 4.66%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 54,606 | 52.32% | 45,605 | 43.69% | 8.62% |
| Dominion* | 49,765 | 47.68% | 58,768 | 56.31% | -8.62% |
The Country Party won the seat of Whitaker Gate, after winning 52.32% of the vote. They gained the seat from the Dominion Party after a two-party swing of 8.62%. This was enough to exceed the required two-party swing of 6.31%; the seat now sits on a raw margin of 4.64%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country* | 57,666 | 61.51% | 56,681 | 60.45% | 1.05% |
| Dominion | 36,090 | 38.49% | 37,081 | 39.55% | -1.05% |
The Country Party won the seat of Port Henry, after winning 61.51% of the vote. They held the seat and saw their share of the vote increase by 1.05%. The seat now sits on a raw margin of 23.01%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country* | 81,296 | 60.48% | 82,194 | 61.15% | -0.67% |
| Dominion | 53,111 | 39.52% | 52,211 | 38.85% | 0.67% |
The Country Party won the seat of Upper Coast, after winning 60.48% of the vote. They held the seat despite a fall in their share of the vote by 0.67%. The seat now sits on a raw margin of 20.97%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country* | 51,442 | 55.86% | 46,671 | 50.68% | 5.18% |
| Dominion | 40,654 | 44.14% | 45,422 | 49.32% | -5.18% |
The Country Party won the seat of Westgate Centre, after winning 55.86% of the vote. They held the seat and saw their share of the vote increase by 5.18%. The seat now sits on a raw margin of 11.71%.
| Party | Votes | Percent | Previous Votes | Previous Percent | Percent Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | 57,473 | 50.41% | 46,890 | 41.13% | 9.28% |
| Dominion* | 56,528 | 49.59% | 67,108 | 58.87% | -9.28% |
The Country Party won the seat of Westgate Outer, after winning 50.41% of the vote. They gained the seat from the Dominion Party after a two-party swing of 9.28%. This was enough to exceed the required two-party swing of 8.87%; the seat now sits on a raw margin of 0.83%.