Jim Anderton's Progressive Party
Jim Anderton's Progressive Party | |
---|---|
Founder | Jim Anderton |
Founded | 27 July 2002 |
Dissolved | 9 March 2012 |
Split from | Alliance |
Headquarters | 296 Selwyn Street, Spreydon, Christchurch |
Ideology | Progressivism Democratic socialism |
Political position | Centre-left to left-wing |
Colors | Grey and Burgundy |
Website | |
www.progressive.org.nz | |
Part of a series on |
Socialism |
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Jim Anderton's Progressive Party (formed in 27 July 2002 as the Progressive Party and renamed after its founder in 2005) was a
The party was established when
Policies
Economically, the party was left of centre, and placed particular attention on economic development. It had a particular focus on the creation of jobs, and said it was committed to achieving
History
The Progressive Party was established by a faction of the Alliance, a left-wing party that does not presently hold seats in Parliament but was once the third-largest party there. Having won ten seats in the
Towards the end of the parliamentary term, tensions between different factions of the party increased. In particular, the party's parliamentary leader, Anderton, and the party's organisational leader and president, Matt McCarten, became involved in a significant dispute. The causes of the problems are debated by the various actors, but a significant factor appears to be a claim by McCarten's faction that the Alliance was giving too much away to the Labour Party. In addition, McCarten's faction claimed that Anderton's leadership style was "autocratic", and that the parliamentary wing was failing to heed the concerns of the party's membership.[4] Anderton rejected the latter charge, and he claimed that criticism of the Alliance's ties to Labour were "extremist" and would nullify the party's ability to influence government policy. The conflict gradually became more and more severe until Anderton eventually demanded the resignation of the party's governing council.
The party organisation expelled Anderton and his supporters,[5] with Anderton announcing his intentions of establishing a new party. However, because of an electoral law, Anderton did not officially leave the Alliance's parliamentary wing, even if he had left the party itself – doing so would have required his resignation from parliament, a step he was unwilling to take. Anderton had supported this law as a result of the great instability caused by rampant party-switching in the previous Parliament. As such, Anderton and his supporters remained technically a part of the Alliance's parliamentary wing until the election, when they officially established their new party.
The
The new party placed Anderton's supporters from the Alliance first on its party list. In the elections, it competed against both the Alliance (then led by Laila Harré, a supporter of McCarten) and Labour. It managed to gain 1.7% of the vote,[7] and Jim Anderton was successful in retaining his electorate seat in Wigram.[8] As such, the party gained entry to parliament with two seats, including deputy leader Matt Robson, who had been a member of Anderton's faction of the Alliance. The Alliance itself failed to win any seats. It received only 1.27% of the vote,[7] and Laila Harré lost to Lynne Pillay in the Waitakere electorate, meaning the Alliance won no electorate seats.
The Progressives took up the Alliance's old position as Labour's junior coalition partner. However, as the Progressives brought fewer seats to the coalition than the Alliance had, the new party's influence was not as great. Anderton retained his position as Minister of Economic Development but lost the role of deputy prime minister to Labour's Michael Cullen, the Minister of Finance and deputy leader of Labour. Robson, who had been Minister of Corrections, Minister for Courts, Minister for Land Information, and Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs in the previous government, lost his cabinet posts.
Shortly before the
In the
Jim Anderton announced his retirement from Parliament from the 2011 general election. The party did not contest the election and is now no longer in Parliament. On 9 March 2012 the party was de-registered at its own request.[1][2]
Electoral results
Election | No. of votes | % of vote | No. of seats won |
Government |
---|---|---|---|---|
2002
|
34,542 | 1.70 | 2 / 120 |
Government coalition |
2005
|
26,441 | 1.16 | 1 / 121 |
Government coalition |
2008
|
21,241 | 0.91 | 1 / 122 |
Opposition |
References
- ^ a b "Cancellation of Registration of Party and Logo" (PDF). New Zealand Gazette. 15 March 2012. pp. 1009–1010. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
- ^ a b "Cancellation of Jim Anderton's Progressive party and logo". New Zealand Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
- ^ "Progressive Party policy". Archived from the original on 1 April 2010. Retrieved 26 March 2010.
- ^ "Anderton appeals to party members", TVNZ, Feb 2002
- ^ "Four weeks' leave to test Coalition". The New Zealand Herald. 22 April 2002. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- NZPA. 12 June 2002. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ^ a b "Official Count Results -- Overall Status". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 7 August 2013.
- ^ "Official Count Results -- Wigram". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 7 August 2013.
- ^ "Interview: Jim Anderton, Progressive party leader". The New Zealand Herald. 13 August 2005. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
- ^ "2008 Election Results". Chief Electoral Office. November 2008. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
- ^ "Anderton to stay with Labour, even in opposition". The New Zealand Herald. 19 November 2008. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
External links
- Cancellation of Jim Anderton’s Progressive party and logo – Electoral Commission