The National Union Party - led by Japie Basson and ex-Chief Justice Henry Allan Fagan in alliance with the United Party - had been formed as a "bridge" to the United Party for moderate nationalists who were unhappy with Verwoerd's leadership, but the party failed and later merged with the United Party.
The elections also saw the first general election appearance of the liberalProgressive Party, which had broken away from the United Party in 1959. The new party retained one MP, in the form of Helen Suzman. She was to remain its sole parliamentary representative until 1974.
During the previous Parliament the seats of the three MPs and four Senators representing black South Africans had been abolished. The 1961 election produced the first Parliament with no representation at all for black South Africans.[2]
Coloured Representative Membersedit
The second election for the four Coloured representative members took place on 4 October 1961, before the (white voters only) general election on 18 October 1961. Under the Separate Representation of Voters Act 1951, the members were to serve until the dissolution of the new Parliament.
The four seats were won by Independents, with United Party support. The recently formed Progressive Party did not contest the four vacancies.[3]
Reduction in voting ageedit
This was the first election after the passage of the Electoral Law Amendment Act, No. 30 of 1958, which reduced the voting age for white voters from 21 to 18.[4]
Delimitation of electoral divisionsedit
The South Africa Act 1909 had provided for a delimitation commission to define the boundaries for each electoral division, for general roll voters in the four provinces. The representation by province, under the eleventh delimitation report of 1958, is set out in the table below. The figures in brackets are the number of electoral divisions in the previous (1953) delimitation. If there is no figure in brackets then the number was unchanged.[5]
This was only the second general election, in South African history, where the boundaries were unchanged from the previous election.
Provinces
Cape
Natal
Orange Free State
Transvaal
Total
Divisions
52 (54)
16 (15)
14 (13)
68
150
Composition at the dissolutionedit
At the end of the 12th Parliament elected since the Union of 1910, when it was dissolved in 1961, the House of Assembly consisted of two groups of members. White voters were represented by 156 general roll members and coloured voters in Cape Province by four white MPs known at the time as Coloured Representative Members (CRM).
The general election only affected the representatives of white voters. The other members were elected on a different date (see above).
The representation by party and province, at the dissolution was:-[6]
Province
National
United
Progressive
National Union
CRM
Total
Cape (general)
33
14
5
-
-
52
Cape (CRM)
-
-
-
-
4
4
Natal
2
11
3
-
-
16
Orange Free State
14
-
-
-
-
14
South-West Africa
5
-
-
1
-
6
Transvaal
48
17
3
-
-
68
Total
102
42
11
1
4
160
Resultsedit
A total of 70 seats were uncontested, of which 50 were won by the National Party and 20 by the United Party.
^Stultz, Newell M.; Butler, Jeffrey (March 1963). "The South African General Election of 1961". Political Science Quarterly. Academy of Political Science. 78 (1): 86–110. doi:10.2307/2146669. JSTOR 2146669.
^Horrell, Muriel. A Survey of Race Relations in South Africa, 1957–1958(PDF). South African Institute of Race Relations. p. 10. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^South Africa 1982, page 129 (table setting out delimitations of seats by province, the relevant one being that of 1958)
1961, south, african, general, election, general, elections, were, held, south, africa, october, 1961, they, were, first, general, elections, after, south, africa, became, republic, following, 1960, south, african, referendum, national, party, under, hendrik, . General elections were held in South Africa on 18 October 1961 1 They were the first general elections after South Africa became a republic following the 1960 South African referendum The National Party under Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd won a majority in the House of Assembly 1961 South African general election 1958 18 October 1961 1961 10 18 1966 All 156 general roll seats in the House of Assembly79 seats needed for a majorityTurnout44 55 29 81pp First party Second party Leader Hendrik Verwoerd De Villiers GraaffParty National UnitedLast election 55 54 103 seats 42 57 53 seatsSeats won 105 49Seat change 2 4Popular vote 370 395 261 361Percentage 46 44 35 28 Swing 9 10pp 7 29pp Third party Fourth party NUPLeader Jan Steytler Henry Allan FaganParty PFP National UnionLast election Seats won 1 1Seat change New NewPopular vote 69 045 50 279Percentage 8 66 6 30 Swing New NewResults by provincePrime Minister before electionHendrik VerwoerdNational Elected Prime Minister Hendrik VerwoerdNationalThe National Union Party led by Japie Basson and ex Chief Justice Henry Allan Fagan in alliance with the United Party had been formed as a bridge to the United Party for moderate nationalists who were unhappy with Verwoerd s leadership but the party failed and later merged with the United Party The elections also saw the first general election appearance of the liberal Progressive Party which had broken away from the United Party in 1959 The new party retained one MP in the form of Helen Suzman She was to remain its sole parliamentary representative until 1974 Contents 1 Changes in franchise 1 1 End of black representation 1 2 Coloured Representative Members 1 3 Reduction in voting age 2 Delimitation of electoral divisions 3 Composition at the dissolution 4 Results 4 1 By province 4 2 By electoral division 5 References 6 NotesChanges in franchise editEnd of black representation edit During the previous Parliament the seats of the three MPs and four Senators representing black South Africans had been abolished The 1961 election produced the first Parliament with no representation at all for black South Africans 2 Coloured Representative Members edit The second election for the four Coloured representative members took place on 4 October 1961 before the white voters only general election on 18 October 1961 Under the Separate Representation of Voters Act 1951 the members were to serve until the dissolution of the new Parliament The four seats were won by Independents with United Party support The recently formed Progressive Party did not contest the four vacancies 3 Reduction in voting age edit This was the first election after the passage of the Electoral Law Amendment Act No 30 of 1958 which reduced the voting age for white voters from 21 to 18 4 Delimitation of electoral divisions editThe South Africa Act 1909 had provided for a delimitation commission to define the boundaries for each electoral division for general roll voters in the four provinces The representation by province under the eleventh delimitation report of 1958 is set out in the table below The figures in brackets are the number of electoral divisions in the previous 1953 delimitation If there is no figure in brackets then the number was unchanged 5 This was only the second general election in South African history where the boundaries were unchanged from the previous election Provinces Cape Natal Orange Free State Transvaal TotalDivisions 52 54 16 15 14 13 68 150Composition at the dissolution editAt the end of the 12th Parliament elected since the Union of 1910 when it was dissolved in 1961 the House of Assembly consisted of two groups of members White voters were represented by 156 general roll members and coloured voters in Cape Province by four white MPs known at the time as Coloured Representative Members CRM The general election only affected the representatives of white voters The other members were elected on a different date see above The representation by party and province at the dissolution was 6 Province National United Progressive National Union CRM TotalCape general 33 14 5 52Cape CRM 4 4Natal 2 11 3 16Orange Free State 14 14South West Africa 5 1 6Transvaal 48 17 3 68Total 102 42 11 1 4 160Results editA total of 70 seats were uncontested of which 50 were won by the National Party and 20 by the United Party nbsp PartyVotes Seats National Party370 39546 44105 2United Party281 36135 2849 4Progressive Party69 0458 661NewNational Union50 2796 301NewConservative Workers Party8 5541 070NewUnited National South West Party6 8560 8600Independent Republican Party2 9030 360NewLiberal Party2 4610 3100Independents5 7070 7200Coloured Representative Members40Total797 561100 00160 3Valid votes797 56199 44Invalid blank votes4 5180 56Total votes802 079100 00Registered voters turnout1 811 16044 29Source Potgieter 7 By province edit Province National United Progressive National Union Independents TotalCape general 34 18 0 0 0 52Cape CRM 0 0 0 0 4 4Natal 2 14 0 0 0 16Orange Free State 14 0 0 0 0 14South West Africa 6 0 0 0 0 6Transvaal 49 17 1 1 0 68Total 105 49 1 1 4 160By electoral division edit Province Constituency National United National Union Progressive Conservative Workers Liberal Independent Invalid blank Total Registered voters TurnoutCape of Good Hope Albany 6 069 1 175 64 7 308 11 521 63 43Aliwal 5 148 3 767 60 8 975 9 679 92 73Beaufort West UnopposedBellville 8 274 3 995 71 12 340 14 953 82 53Ceres UnopposedConstantia 7 653 1 115 43 8 811 13 499 65 27Cradock UnopposedDe Aar Colesberg UnopposedFort Beaufort 4 962 3 597 41 8 600 9 388 91 61George 7 624 1 379 506 45 9 554 10 967 87 12Gordonia UnopposedGraaff Reinet UnopposedGreen Point UnopposedHottentots Holland 5 806 4 264 49 10 119 10 926 92 61Humansdorp 5 979 3 154 20 9 153 10 414 87 89Cape Town Gardens UnopposedKimberley North 6 566 4 004 71 10 641 12 213 87 13Kimberley South 6 359 4 925 43 11 327 12 629 89 69King William s Town UnopposedKuruman UnopposedMaitland 4 610 1 688 3 703 27 10 028 12 336 81 29Malmesbury UnopposedMoorreesburg UnopposedMossel Bay UnopposedNamakwaland UnopposedEast London North 6 158 2 519 58 8 735 12 984 67 28East London City 6 053 1 277 40 7 370 12 304 59 90Oudtshoorn UnopposedPaarl 7 272 2 893 36 10 201 11 676 87 37Parow UnopposedPinelands 6 433 2 881 68 9 382 12 730 73 70Piketberg UnopposedPort Elizabeth North 6 763 3 995 29 10 787 13 842 77 93Port Elizabeth Central UnopposedPort Elizabeth South 5 896 3 166 74 9 136 13 189 69 27Port Elizabeth West UnopposedPrieska 5 059 3 244 40 8 343 9 100 91 68Queenstown 5 706 5 337 78 11 121 11 440 97 21Rondebosch UnopposedSea Point 6 199 3 428 53 9 680 12 997 74 48Simonstown 6 244 1 612 60 7 916 13 071 60 56Somerset East UnopposedSalt River 4 670 2 190 56 6 916 10 757 64 29Stellenbosch 7 465 2 556 721 43 10 785 13 247 81 41Swellendam 5 552 3 762 61 9 375 10 277 91 22Transkeian Territories UnopposedUitenhage UnopposedFalse Bay 6 731 3 781 57 10 569 12 750 82 89Vasco UnopposedVryburg UnopposedWorcester 6 832 3 175 56 10 063 11 424 88 09Wynberg 6 311 1 911 18 8 240 11 402 72 27Natal Drakensberg UnopposedDurban Berea 5 451 4 568 58 10 077 12 986 77 60Durban Musgrave 5 181 4 222 33 9 436 12 575 75 04Durban North 6 167 3 991 91 10 249 13 463 76 13Durban Point UnopposedDurban Central 5 349 504 43 5 896 12 167 48 46Durban Umbilo UnopposedDurban Umlazi UnopposedNatal South Coast 4 956 2 367 115 104 7 542 10 164 74 20Newcastle 5 919 3 646 65 9 630 11 123 86 58Pietermaritzburg District 4 014 3 839 83 7 936 11 488 69 08Pietermaritzburg City 3 915 3 282 129 7 326 13 621 53 78Pinetown 5 032 3 064 79 8 175 11 506 71 05Umhlatuzana UnopposedVryheid 5 555 2 804 109 8 468 9 768 86 69Zululand 4 200 5 856 104 a 55 10 215 11 738 87 03Orange Free State Bethlehem UnopposedBloemfontein District UnopposedBloemfontein East 7 485 3 201 16 10 702 14 830 72 16Bloemfontein West 8 076 3 645 16 11 737 14 678 79 96Fauresmith Boshof UnopposedHarrismith UnopposedHeilbron UnopposedKroonstad 7 524 1 837 65 9 426 11 133 84 67Ladybrand UnopposedOdendaalsrus 7 797 2 304 49 10 150 13 445 75 49Smithfield UnopposedVredefort UnopposedWelkom 8 217 3 890 32 12 139 15 904 76 33Winburg UnopposedSouth West Africa Etosha UnopposedKaras 2 954 2 113 b 26 5 093 5 722 89 01Middelland 3 264 2 135 b 40 5 439 6 560 82 91Namib UnopposedOmaruru UnopposedWindhoek 3 709 2 608 b 74 6 391 8 021 79 68Transvaal Alberton 7 099 2 094 29 9 222 13 429 68 67Benoni 3 957 1 293 52 5 302 12 112 43 77Bethal Middelburg 5 757 2 521 51 8 329 10 216 81 53Bezuidenhout 1 983 6 507 26 8 516 11 839 71 93Boksburg 6 920 5 413 35 12 368 14 051 88 02Brakpan 6 158 3 629 96 9 883 12 559 78 69Brits UnopposedChristiana 6 438 2 322 51 8 811 10 015 87 98Edenvale 6 509 3 812 29 10 350 13 781 75 10Ermelo 5 520 2 811 71 8 402 9 926 84 65Florida 4 473 6 407 28 10 908 12 750 85 55Geduld 7 006 3 576 33 10 615 13 922 76 25Germiston 6 239 2 053 31 8 323 11 015 75 56Germiston District 3 675 6 691 22 10 388 13 362 77 74Groblersdal UnopposedHeidelberg UnopposedHercules UnopposedHillbrow 5 564 1 346 45 6 955 12 690 54 81Hospital 4 799 992 30 5 821 10 877 53 52Houghton 4 841 5 405 69 10 315 12 771 80 77Innesdal UnopposedJeppes UnopposedJohannesburg North 5 413 4 541 67 10 021 13 245 75 66Kempton Park UnopposedKensington UnopposedKlerksdorp 8 912 3 226 108 33 12 279 15 705 78 19Krugersdorp 6 023 3 831 47 9 901 12 555 78 86Langlaagte 5 891 2 325 58 8 274 11 844 69 86Lichtenburg UnopposedLosberg UnopposedLydenburg Barberton 5 326 2 849 79 8 254 9 758 84 59Maraisburg UnopposedMarico 5 429 2 390 54 7 873 9 061 86 89Mayfair 5 431 2 039 34 7 504 11 176 67 14Nelspruit 5 790 3 059 37 8 886 10 564 84 12Nigel UnopposedNorth East Rand UnopposedNorth West Rand 6 495 4 774 29 11 298 13 118 86 13Orange Grove 5 363 4 846 65 10 274 12 594 81 58Parktown 5 100 5 015 65 10 180 12 458 81 71Pietersburg 6 201 2 200 58 8 459 10 766 78 57Potchefstroom UnopposedPretoria District 6 753 3 666 82 10 501 12 642 83 06Pretoria East 9 155 2 622 89 11 866 16 119 73 61Pretoria Rissik 6 149 6 713 40 12 902 14 629 88 19Pretoria Central UnopposedPretoria Sunnyside 7 528 4 801 27 12 356 15 521 79 61Pretoria West UnopposedPrinshof UnopposedRandfontein 6 227 3 280 120 9 627 11 772 81 78Roodepoort 7 532 3 284 36 10 852 13 245 81 93Rosettenville UnopposedRustenburg 5 886 2 544 40 8 470 10 448 81 07Soutpansberg UnopposedSprings UnopposedStanderton 5 340 3 139 58 8 537 10 066 84 81Turffontein UnopposedVanderbijl Park UnopposedVentersdorp 6 509 2 805 55 9 369 11 677 80 23Vereeniging 6 465 4 745 60 11 270 13 043 86 41Von Brandis UnopposedWakketstroom UnopposedWaterberg UnopposedWestdene 6 167 2 137 39 8 343 11 859 70 35Witbank UnopposedWolmaransstad 6 611 2 142 20 8 773 10 633 82 51Wonderboom UnopposedYeoville UnopposedSource Government Gazette 110References edit Stultz Newell M Butler Jeffrey March 1963 The South African General Election of 1961 Political Science Quarterly Academy of Political Science 78 1 86 110 doi 10 2307 2146669 JSTOR 2146669 In No Uncertain Terms page 44 Keesing s Contemporary Archives 1961 1962 page 18449 Horrell Muriel A Survey of Race Relations in South Africa 1957 1958 PDF South African Institute of Race Relations p 10 Retrieved 28 June 2011 South Africa 1982 page 129 table setting out delimitations of seats by province the relevant one being that of 1958 Keesing s Contemporary Archives 1960 1961 page 18449 Dirk J Potgieter 1971 Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa Volume 4 p273 In No Uncertain Terms by Helen Suzman Mandarin Paperback 1994 Keesing s Contemporary Archives South Africa 1982 Official Yearbook of the Republic of South Africa published by Chris van Rensburg PublicationsNotes edit Withdrew before election day a b c United National South West Party Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1961 South African general election amp oldid 1203324062, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
