Botany (New Zealand electorate)

Background

The Representation Commission established the electoral district of Botany after the 2006 New Zealand census due to high population growth in and around Auckland. The new electorate resulted from several sweeping changes to the electoral landscape of South Auckland:

• The southern end of Port Waikato was lanced and combined with the area around Clevedon township to form .
• The resultant change pulled the Clevedon electorate tighter around the city of Papakura for which the electorate is now named.
• In the north, Manukau East was pulled up through Otahuhu into Auckland City, in the process dropping the western suburbs of Flat Bush, East Tāmaki, Dannemora and Botany Downs, which combined with fragments of the Clevedon and Pakuranga electorates to form Botany.

Population centres

The electorate is located in East Auckland and includes the suburbs of Botany, Botany Downs, Somerville, Northpark, Huntington Park, Golflands, Burswood, Dannemora, Shamrock Park, East Tāmaki, East Tāmaki Heights, Highbrook and Flat Bush. In the 2025 boundary review, the electorate would gain Mission Heights from , and the coastal and rural communities of Whitford, Beachlands and Maraetai from , while transferring Cockle Bay and Shelly Park to , and Clover Park to .

Demographics

Demographically, Botany is older than the rest of New Zealand, with over half of its population aged over 30. Asian New Zealanders make up a plurality of the electorate (44.9%) nearly three times the national average, and nearly twice as many Pasifika New Zealanders (13 to 8.1%), which makes Botany a minority-majority electorate. Botany has the highest proportion of people born overseas of any New Zealand electorate (53.9% in 2018), the most Buddhists in a New Zealand electorate, the lowest proportion of residents who do not speak English (10.8%) of the general electorates, and the highest number of one-family homes. The average income in the electorate is high, with over half of the electorate's residents earning over $50,000 a year.

A 2005 academic survey assessing the voting behaviour of Asian New Zealanders showed a strong preference for the Labour Party, with a sizeable proportion prepared to vote for the National Party (47 to 40); it also showed that among Asian New Zealanders, the most important issues were the economy and law and order. This was demonstrated by a large anti-crime march (a crowd of 15,000 was estimated, with a significant number of these being Asian New Zealanders) was held in Auckland (on the streets of Botany) in July 2008 amidst claims of increasing violent crime in New Zealand targeted against its Asian population. The march's organiser Peter Low used his website to clarify his position, calling for harsher sentencing, victims' rights and zero "criminal rights".

History

Botany was first created for the 2008 general election, and won by Pansy Wong for the National Party.

Both National and the ACT party stood Chinese New Zealanders as their candidates in 2008; Pansy Wong and Kenneth Wang, respectively. Labour chose Koro Tawa, an Auckland University lecturer. Raymond Huo, a Chinese-speaking lawyer, was initially mooted for the Labour nomination, but eventually chose to stand as a list-only candidate.

On 14 December 2010 it was announced that a by-election was to be held on 5 March 2011 due to the resignation of incumbent MP Pansy Wong. The electorate was won by Jami-Lee Ross from the New Zealand National Party.

In October 2018, Jami-Lee Ross resigned from the National Party and accused party leader Simon Bridges of breaching electoral law. Ross announced his intention to resign from parliament and run as an independent in the resulting by-election, however he later decided against resigning. Christopher Luxon won the National Party selection in November 2019.

On 15 September 2020 Ross announced he was no longer intending to contest the electorate, but will instead contest the upcoming election as a list only candidate for his newly formed party, Advance NZ. Luxon won the seat at the as Ross was ejected from Parliament.

Members of Parliament

Key

List MPs

Members of Parliament elected from party lists in elections where that person also unsuccessfully contested the Botany electorate. Unless otherwise stated, all MPs' terms began and ended at general elections.

Key

Election results

2023 election

2020 election

2017 election

2014 election

2011 election

Electorate (as at 26 November 2011): 43,204

2011 by-election

Official results of the 5 March by-election.

2008 election

See Template:MMP election box for documentation on these MMP templates

Table footnotes

References

References

1. (8 August 2025). "Report of the Representation Commission 2025". Representation Commission.
2. (27 April 2021). "Botany - Electorate Profile". Parliamentary Library.
3. (2004-08-20). "Asian Vote". New Zealand Listener.
4. (2004-07-05). "Huge turnout for anti-crime march". TVNZ News.
5. (2004-08-05). "ASIAN ANTI-CRIME GROUP (AAG) TRUST NEW ZEALAND". Asian Anti-Crime Group Trust.
6. Tan, Lincoln. (20 June 2008). "Botany a hot Asian battleground". [[The New Zealand Herald]].
7. Blockley, Louise. (22 August 2008). "Raymond Huo on Labour list". Te Waha Nui.
8. Cheng, Derek. (14 December 2010). "Pansy Wong resigns as MP". [[The New Zealand Herald]].
9. Morning Report. (17 October 2018). "Jami-Lee Ross vows to fight for Botany seat".
10. (5 November 2019). "National selects Christopher Luxon as its new candidate for Botany". [[The New Zealand Herald]].
11. (15 September 2020). "Election 2020: Advance NZ's Jami-Lee Ross abandons attempt to retain Botany seat". [[The New Zealand Herald]].
12. "Botany - Official Result". Electoral Commission.
13. "Botany - Official Result". New Zealand Electoral Commission.
14. "Party Votes and Turnout by Electorate (2020)". [[Electoral Commission (New Zealand).
15. New Zealand Electoral Commission. "Botany - Official Result".
16. "Party Votes and Turnout by Electorate". [[Electoral Commission (New Zealand).
17. [[Electoral Commission (New Zealand). (21 January 2016). "Official Count Results – Botany".
18. "Botany results, 2011".
19. (2 November 2011). "Information for Voters in Botany". Elections New Zealand.
20. "201 Election Candidates". kiwiblog.co.nz.
21. (11 July 2011 }}{{dead link). "Kiwi Chinese to stand". Times online.
22. Danya Levy. (2011-10-18). "New Citizens Party joins with Conservatives". Stuff.
23. "Candidates". ACT New Zealand.
24. (22 August 2011). "UnitedFuture announces first wave of candidates".
25. (21 October 2011). "Enrolment statistics". Electoral Commission.
26. (2011). "By-Election Results -- Botany". electionresults.govt.nz.
27. [http://2008.electionresults.govt.nz/electorate-3.html Election result: Botany, 2008] {{webarchive. link. (11 December 2008)