Leader_of_the_New_Zealand_Labour_Party

Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party

Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party

Highest ranked politician within the party

The leader of the Labour Party is the highest-ranked political position within the New Zealand Labour Party, who serves as the parliamentary leader and leading spokesperson of the party. The current leader is Chris Hipkins, after Jacinda Ardern resigned.

Quick Facts Term length, Inaugural holder ...

History

The post of leader of the Labour Party was officially created upon the party's inception in 1916, though the title "leader" was often substituted and/or complemented with the title "chairman".[1] At the 1935 election, Michael Joseph Savage led the Labour Party to victory, becoming the first Labour prime minister. In 1963, Arnold Nordmeyer became the first New Zealand-born leader of the party; three previous leaders had been born in Australia and one each in England and Scotland. The most electorally successful Labour leader to date is Helen Clark, who won three elections, in 1999, 2002 and 2005. Clark is also the party's longest-serving leader, having served for 14 years, 346 days between 1993 and 2008.[2] Peter Fraser is the longest-serving Labour prime minister, serving 9 years, 261 days between 1940 and 1949.

Selection

A leadership candidate must be a member of parliament (MP). A new leader is elected whenever a vacancy arises, whether due to resignation, incapacitation, or following a motion of no confidence by the parliamentary caucus.[3]

The current election rules were adopted in 2021, replacing earlier rules adopted in 2012.[4] Candidates need 10% of the caucus to nominate. The caucus votes via exhaustive ballot (absent MPs can vote by proxy), and a candidate requires the support of two-thirds of the caucus to be elected. If no one can get two-thirds the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated.[5] If there are two candidates left and neither got two-thirds, there may be multiple rounds of voting to identify a consensus candidate. If one cannot be found then the leadership is determined by an electoral college comprising the caucus (40% of the total vote), party members (40%) and affiliated trade unions (20%).[4]

No later than three months following a general election, there must be a caucus vote to endorse the leader. If they fail to receive endorsement then the position of party leader is vacated and an election is triggered.[3]

Role

When the Labour Party forms the Parliamentary Opposition, as is the case now, the party leader commonly takes on the position of the leader of the Opposition and chairs a Shadow Cabinet. Likewise, when the party is in Government, the leader typically becomes the prime minister.

Unique to Labour, the party's caucus possesses the right to elect MPs to Cabinet, rather than the leader choosing them. The practice began following the 1940 leadership election.[6] Michael Joseph Savage was the only leader to solely appoint his own cabinet following the election victories in 1935 and 1938.

List of leaders

The following is a complete list of Labour Party leaders (including acting leaders):

Key:
  Labour   Reform   United   National
PM: Prime Minister
LO: Leader of the Opposition
†: Died in office

More information No., Leader (Birth–Death) ...
  1. [N 1]
    Deputy leader who assumed the role of party leader temporarily because of the death or resignation of the incumbent, serving until the election of a new leader.

Timeline

Chris HipkinsJacinda ArdernAndrew LittleDavid CunliffeDavid ShearerPhil GoffHelen ClarkMike Moore (New Zealand politician)Geoffrey Palmer (politician)David LangeBill RowlingNorman KirkArnold NordmeyerWalter NashPeter FraserMichael Joseph SavageHarry HollandAlfred Hindmarsh

See also

References

  1. [1]
    Paul, John Thomas (1946). Humanism in Politics; New Zealand Labour Party Retrospect. The University of Michigan. pp. 64–65. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  2. [2]
    Audrey Young (12 February 2008). "Clark beats record of longest-serving Labour leader – probably". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 12 February 2008.
  3. [3]
    "Constitution and Rules" (PDF). New Zealand Labour Party. 2019. pp. 63–64. Retrieved 19 January 2020 – via New Zealand Electoral Commission.
  4. [4]
    Malpass, Luke (6 November 2021). "Labour Party changes rules to elect leader, hands first call back to caucus". Stuff. Retrieved 19 January 2023.
  5. [5]
    "How the Labour Party vote will work – and why we might know the next PM by Saturday". RNZ. 20 January 2023. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  6. [6]
    Beaglehole, Tim. "Fraser, Peter". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 11 December 2011.
Share this article:

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Leader_of_the_New_Zealand_Labour_Party, and is written by contributors. Text is available under a CC BY-SA 4.0 International License; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.