130 years ago today on September 7-8…

130 years ago today…

A new amendment to the Electoral Bill was put forward for vote in the council on September 7. According to a Mr Stewart, the passing of this amendment would mean the sacrifice of the bill. It is unclear what exactly this clause was, but it included giving women the exact same electoral rights as men. 

Although at face value, this clause seems to be beneficial to New Zealand women, it would have meant an extension of the time it took for the bill to be passed. This could potentially mean that women would not be able to vote in the 1893 general election. Furthermore, the original bill already gave women sufficient electoral rights. 

The same amendment had also been introduced the year previously, which essentially “wrecked” the bill. In 1892, controversial postal vote clauses were put forth, which caused the bill to be dropped.

There was a general feeling of anxiety in the House about whether the clause would be passed, but in a surprising twist, it was rejected by a majority of one vote.