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All 30 seats in the Legislative Assembly 16 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 29 April 1924, the first elections to the new Legislative Assembly following the granting of responsible government to the colony. The result was a comprehensive victory for the Rhodesia Party, which had been formed by the supporters of responsible government, who won 26 out of the 30 seats.
No change was made to the basic electoral procedure which continued to be the single non-transferable vote, or First past the post system, cast by means of the secret ballot.
The Letters Patent granting the colony the right to self-government in 1923 made no change to the pre-existing franchise. The law provided that voters must have been resident in Southern Rhodesia for at least six months, and have the ability to complete the claim form for the electoral register in their own handwriting if the registrar required, and to write from dictation 50 words in the English language. In addition, voters had to meet one of three criteria for their financial means: either occupy property worth £150 in their Electoral District, or own a registered mining claim within the colony (for which residence was not required), or receive annual salary of £100 in the colony.
The Letters Patent created a legislative assembly with 30 members, and for simplicity the 15 electoral districts set the previous year for the Legislative Council were used for the new assembly, but with each district returning two members. Voters were therefore entitled to two votes.
Since the previous election, and the grant of responsible government, the Responsible Government Association had organised itself under the leadership of Sir Charles Coghlan into the Rhodesia Party and been appointed as the new government. In addition the Rhodesia Labour Party, which had been formed some years before, entered into the election. However a substantial number of candidates fought as Independents on their own record. In general these candidates represented small farmers, small businesses and mining interests.
The Labour Party had supported the Responsible Government Association in its campaign for a separate government for the colony, and in opposition to union with South Africa, and members of both parties hoped to reach agreement on an allocation of seats between them so that they did not oppose each other. Negotiations were unsuccessful and where candidates of the parties were fighting for seats, the fight between them became bitter. The independent candidates were also in opposition to the 'establishment' party and many stressed the need for a strong opposition in the new Assembly.
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rhodesia Party | 13,987 | 58.33 | 26 | |
| Rhodesia Labour Party | 3,527 | 14.71 | 0 | |
| Independents | 6,466 | 26.96 | 4 | |
| Total | 23,980 | 100.00 | 30 | |
| Valid votes | 11,990 | 98.46 | ||
| Invalid/blank votes | 187 | 1.54 | ||
| Total votes | 12,177 | 100.00 | ||
| Registered voters/turnout | 20,060 | 60.70 | ||
| Source: Willson | ||||
| Constituency Electorate and turnout | Candidate | Party | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| BULAWAYO CENTRAL 1,493 (54.8%) | † Francis Leslie Hadfield | RP | 420 |
| James Cowden | RP | 397 | |
| Septimus Leonard John Steggall | Lab | 249 | |
| Harry Joseph Sonnenberg | Ind | 217 | |
| William George Durbin Morsman | Lab | 194 | |
| Frederick Fisher | Ind | 159 | |
| BULAWAYO DISTRICT 1,253 (62.3%) | Frederic Philip Mennell | RP | 499 |
| Alexander Robert Thomson | RP | 492 | |
| Harry Herbert Davies | Lab | 335 | |
| George Walter Price | Lab | 234 | |
| BULAWAYO NORTH 1,490 (62.9%) | †Sir Charles Patrick John Coghlan | RP | 830 |
| Robert James Hudson | RP | 771 | |
| William Davies | Lab | 274 | |
| BULAWAYO SOUTH 1,486 (69.0%) | Charles Folliot Birney | RP | 631 |
| Henry Robert Barbour | RP | 469 | |
| Lawrence John Walter Keller | Lab | 408 | |
| George Mitchell | Ind | 303 | |
| Robert John Dent | Lab | 241 | |
| EASTERN 1,617 (64.2%) | Charles Edward Gilfillan | Ind | 590 |
| John Louis Martin | Ind | 576 | |
| Lewis Aloys MacDonald Hastings | RP | 552 | |
| William Matthias Longden | RP | 359 | |
| GWELO 1,456 (66.0%) | David Campbell Duncan Munro | RP | 572 |
| Max Danziger | RP | 527 | |
| John Charles Jesser Coope | Ind | 401 | |
| James Henry Edwards | Ind | 257 | |
| James White Ross | Lab | 165 | |
| HARTLEY 1,519 (58.2%) | Sir Ernest William Sanders Montagu | Ind | 426 |
| Osmond Charteris Du Port | RP | 422 | |
| Richard Wright Albertson | Ind | 379 | |
| Burton Ireland Collings | RP | 275 | |
| Robert Hawker Futter | Ind | 267 | |
| MAZOE 1,351 (50.4%) | Sir Francis James Newton | RP | 624 |
| John Wallace Downie | RP | 579 | |
| William Martin | Lab | 159 | |
| MIDLANDS 1,321 (70.6%) | † Robert Dunipace Gilchrist | RP | 415 |
| † William James Boggie | RP | 307 | |
| John Austen | Ind | 307 | |
| Henry Tyndall Brett | Ind | 260 | |
| William Harrison | Lab | 184 | |
| Miss Ellen Constance Steedman | Ind | 150 | |
| † Walter Douglas Douglas-Jones | Ind | 130 | |
| George Alexander Campbell | Lab | 111 | |
| NORTHERN 1,387 (54.7%) | † William Muter Leggate | RP | 612 |
| James Murdoch Eaton | RP | 608 | |
| † John McChlery | Ind | 296 | |
| SALISBURY NORTH 1,876 | Percival Donald Leslie Fynn | RP | unopposed |
| Godfrey Martin Huggins | RP | unopposed | |
| SALISBURY SOUTH 1,454 (58.1%) | Harry Bertin | RP | 595 |
| George Frederick Elcombe | RP | 433 | |
| Milton Evan Cleveland | Ind | 329 | |
| George Harold Johnson | Ind | 208 | |
| Albert Edward Wetherill | Lab | 125 | |
| UMTALI 1,598 (60.1%) | Charles Eickhoff | RP | 506 |
| †Mrs. Ethel Tawse Jollie | RP | 404 | |
| William Robb Love | Lab | 378 | |
| James Allin Methuen | Lab | 299 | |
| Francis Rudolph Myburgh | Ind | 206 | |
| Thomas Benjamin Hulley | Ind | 130 | |
| VICTORIA 1,353 (52.0%) | † Howard Unwin Moffat | RP | 539 |
| Lucius Knapp Robinson | RP | 469 | |
| John Albert Halliday | Ind | 399 | |
| WESTERN 1,282 (51.8%) | † Robert Alexander Fletcher | Ind | 476 |
| John Parke Richardson | RP | 375 | |
| William Elliot Thomas | RP | 306 | |
| William Edward Green | Lab | 171 |
Note: As the Midlands result was a tie between Boggie and Austen, the election was determined by a drawing of lots, which was supervised by a Judge of the High Court, on 15 May 1924.
Sir Francis Newton resigned on 26 August 1924 on appointment as High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Southern Rhodesia, precipitating a byelection in his electoral district which was held on 26 September 1924.
| Constituency Electorate and turnout | Candidate | Party | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| MAZOE 1,351 (53.6%) | Percy Sidney Inskipp | RP | 394 |
| John William Dunlop | Ind RP | 330 |
George Elcombe resigned his seat on 10 January 1927 and a byelection was held on 8 March 1927.
| Constituency Electorate and turnout | Candidate | Party | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| SALISBURY SOUTH 1,454 (64.9%) | Frank William Frederick Johnson | Ind | 406 |
| John William Dunlop | Lab | 362 | |
| Burton Ireland Collings | RP | 175 |
Sir Charles Coghlan died on 28 August 1927 and a byelection was held on 18 November 1927.
| Constituency | Candidate | Party | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| BULAWAYO NORTH | Allan Ross Welsh | RP | 549 |
| Edward Jonathan Davies | Lab | 377 |
William James Boggie died on 8 February 1928 and a byelection was held on 18 April 1928.
| Constituency Electorate and turnout | Candidate | Party | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| MIDLANDS 1,374 (47.5%) | Arthur James Taylor | RP | 352 |
| Alexander Louis Wynand Koch Worsthorne | PP | 301 |
There were a number of changes within the assembly. Robert Dunipace Gilchrist 'crossed the floor' to sit as an opposition Independent in 1925. He was followed in May 1927 by Francis Leslie Hadfield and Max Danziger. In June 1927, the Progressive Party was formed by Harry Bertin, Robert Alexander Fletcher, Robert Dunipace Gilchrist, George Edward Gilfillan, Francis Leslie Hadfield, Frank William Frederick Johnson, John Louis Martin, Frederic Philip Mennell and Sir Ernest William Sanders Montagu. This party campaigned for a pro-white immigration policy, the development of Matabeleland, and establishing African reserves. It was opposed to monopolies, and sought reform and depoliticisation of the Civil Service.
Elections in Southern Rhodesia were used from 1899 to 1923 to elect part of the Legislative Council and from 1924 to elect the whole of the Legislative Assembly which governed the colony. Since the granting of self-government in 1923, Southern Rhodesia used the Westminster parliamentary system as its basis of government. The Political party that had most of the seats in the Legislative Assembly became the government. The person in charge of this bloc was the Premier, later renamed Prime Minister, who then chose his cabinet from his elected colleagues.
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The Southern Rhodesia Legislative Council election of March 17, 1902 was the second election to the Legislative Council of Southern Rhodesia. No change was made in the administration of the elections compared with the first elections three years previously, so the Legislative Council continued to comprise ten voting members: the Administrator of Southern Rhodesia ex officio, five members nominated by the British South Africa Company, and four members elected by registered voters from two electoral districts. The Resident Commissioner of Southern Rhodesia, Sir Marshal James Clarke, also sat on the Legislative Council ex officio but without the right to vote.
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The Southern Rhodesia Legislative Council election of April 24, 1908 was the fourth election to the Legislative Council of Southern Rhodesia. The Legislative Council had, since 1903, comprised seven members elected by registered voters from four electoral districts; in 1907 the number of members nominated by the British South Africa Company was reduced from seven to five. The Administrator of Southern Rhodesia sat on the Legislative Council ex officio. The Resident Commissioner of Southern Rhodesia, James George Fair, also sat on the Legislative Council ex officio but without the right to vote.
The Southern Rhodesia Legislative Council election of 12 April 1911 was the fifth election to the Legislative Council of Southern Rhodesia. The Legislative Council had, since 1907, comprised thirteen voting members: the Administrator of Southern Rhodesia ex officio, five members nominated by the British South Africa Company, and seven members elected by registered voters from four electoral districts. The Resident Commissioner of Southern Rhodesia, Robert Burns-Begg also sat on the Legislative Council ex officio but without the right to vote.
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Legislative Council elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 30 April 1920, the seventh elections to the Legislative Council.
General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 19 September 1928, the second elections to the Legislative Assembly. The Rhodesia Party, which had won an overwhelming victory in the previous elections in 1924, was re-elected with a slightly reduced majority.
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The Southern Rhodesia sweepstakes referendum of February 1934 saw the voters of Southern Rhodesia vote to permit the running of sweepstakes gambling "under strict legislative control", managed by the government of the colony.
General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 7 November 1934, fourth elections since the colony of Southern Rhodesia was granted self-government. The elections were called only a year after the previous elections when the Prime Minister, Godfrey Huggins, formed the United Party as a merger of the conservative section of his Reform Party and the former governing Rhodesia Party. Huggins succeeded in winning a landslide, defeating all but one of his Reform Party opponents.
General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 14 April 1939, the fifth elections since the colony of Southern Rhodesia was granted internal self-government. Prime Minister Godfrey Huggins' United Party government were re-elected in a landslide. The elections were called slightly earlier than the deadline as Huggins feared the German invasion of Czechoslovakia would lead to European War.
The Rhodesia Labour Party was a political party which existed in Southern Rhodesia from 1923 until the 1950s. Originally formed on the model of the British Labour Party from trade unions and being especially dominated by railway workers, it formed the main opposition party from 1934 to 1946. The party suffered a catastrophic split during the Second World War and lost all its seats, and a further split over the attitude to the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland ended its involvement in Rhodesian politics.
General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 25 April 1946, seven years after the previous elections in 1939, the term of the Southern Rhodesian Legislative Assembly having been extended so that there would be no general elections during World War II. The elections showed a strong shift to the right, as the United Party government led by Prime Minister Godfrey Huggins lost its overall majority; however, Huggins could count on the support of one of the factions of the Rhodesia Labour Party in any vote of confidence and therefore remained in office.
General elections were held in Southern Rhodesia on 15 September 1948. They saw Prime Minister Godfrey Huggins regain the overall majority he had lost in the previous elections in 1946. Huggins' United Party won a landslide, reducing the opposition Liberal Party to a small minority.
The Responsible Government Association (RGA), called the Rhodesia Party from 1923, was a political party in Southern Rhodesia. Founded in 1917, it initially advocated responsible government for Southern Rhodesia within the British Empire, as opposed to incorporation into the Union of South Africa. When responsible government was achieved in 1923, the party became the governing Rhodesia Party. It endured until 1934, when it merged with the right wing of the Reform Party to create the United Party, which remained in power for 28 years afterwards, and was itself defunct by 1965.
The Reform Party was a political party that was formed in Southern Rhodesia in 1932, which went on to form the government under Godfrey Huggins in 1933, before splitting in 1934 and disappearing by the end of the decade. The party had support from disenchanted Rhodesian settlers including "railway men, civil servants, artisans without a job and farmers in economic distress." Its initial program proposed the creation of a central bank to regulate the colony's currency and credit and other measures to provide economic support for white workers and farmers facing competition from low paid African workers and manufacturers facing competition from cheaper South African imports.
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