Pretoria Central (House of Assembly of South Africa constituency)
| Pretoria Central | |
|---|---|
| Pretoria-Sentraal | |
| Former constituency for the South African House of Assembly | |
 Location of Pretoria Central within Pretoria (1915) | |
| Province | Transvaal |
| Electorate | 18,882 (1989) |
| Former constituency | |
| Created | 1915 |
| Abolished | 1994 |
| Number of members | 1 |
| Last MHA | Gert Oosthuizen (NP) |
| Replaced by | Gauteng |
Pretoria Central (Afrikaans: Pretoria-Sentraal) was a constituency in the Transvaal Province of South Africa, which existed from 1915 to 1994. It covered the city centre of Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa. Throughout its existence it elected one member to the House of Assembly and one to the Transvaal Provincial Council.
Franchise notes
When the Union of South Africa was formed in 1910, the electoral qualifications in use in each pre-existing colony were kept in place. In the Transvaal Colony, and its predecessor the South African Republic, the vote was restricted to white men, and as such, elections in the Transvaal Province were held on a whites-only franchise from the beginning. The franchise was also restricted by property and education qualifications until the 1933 general election, following the passage of the Women's Enfranchisement Act, 1930 and the Franchise Laws Amendment Act, 1931. From then on, the franchise was given to all white citizens aged 21 or over. Non-whites remained disenfranchised until the end of apartheid and the introduction of universal suffrage in 1994.[1]
History
Pretoria Central was first created in 1915, as part of a general increase in representation for the Transvaal. It was the third constituency in Pretoria, alongside Pretoria West and East, and several others would be created over the years. Its first MP, Edward Rooth, was elected for the Unionist Party, but defected to the governing South African Party well ahead of the parties' formal merger. From then until 1948, the seat generally favoured the SAP and its successor, the United Party, but the Herenigde Nasionale Party captured the seat in 1948 as part of their nationwide victory. The NP held the seat for the remainder of its existence, in spite of challenges from the UP in the early years and the Conservative Party towards the end. Its final MP, Gert Oosthuizen, had a long political career after the end of apartheid, eventually joining the ANC and serving as a deputy minister until 2019.
Members
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | Edward Rooth | Unionist | |
| 1920 | South African | ||
| 1921 | |||
| 1924 | Charles Te Water | National | |
| 1929 | P. V. Pocock | South African | |
| 1933 | |||
| 1934 | United | ||
| 1938 | |||
| 1943 | E. P. Pieterse | ||
| 1948 | D. J. G. van den Heever | HNP | |
| 1953 | National | ||
| 1958 | |||
| 1961 | |||
| 1966 | |||
| 1970 | D. J. L. Nel | ||
| 1974 | |||
| 1977 | |||
| 1981 | |||
| 1987 | Gert Oosthuizen | ||
| 1989 | |||
| 1994 | constituency abolished | ||
Detailed results
Elections in the 1910s
Elections in the 1920s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South African | Edward Rooth | 1,263 | 59.2 | −2.5 | |
| National | H. Reitz | 551 | 25.8 | +4.1 | |
| Labour | P. M. van Leer | 320 | 15.0 | −1.6 | |
| Independent | R. A. Kerr | 2 | 0.1 | New | |
| Majority | 712 | 33.4 | −6.6 | ||
| Turnout | 2,136 | 63.6 | −13.8 | ||
| South African hold | Swing | -3.3 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South African | Edward Rooth | Unopposed | |||
| South African hold | |||||
References
- ^ "EISA South Africa: Historical franchise arrangements". Eisa.org.za. Archived from the original on 9 May 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
- ^ Schoeman, B.M. (1977). Parlementêre verkiesings in Suid-Afrika 1910-1976. Pretoria: Aktuele Publikasies.
- ^ Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa (1972). "House of Assembly" (vol. 5, pp. 617–636). Cape Town: Nasionale Opvoedkundige Uitgewery (Nasou).
- ^ South Africa 1980/81: Official Yearbook of the Republic of South Africa. Johannesburg: Chris van Rensburg Publications.
- ^ South Africa 1983: Official Yearbook of the Republic of South Africa. Johannesburg: Chris van Rensburg Publications.
- ^ Government Gazette of South Africa, No. 10751. 22 May 1987. Pretoria: Government of South Africa.
- ^ Government Gazette of South Africa, No. 12109. 20 September 1989. Pretoria: Government of South Africa.