Story: Labour Party

Labour Party membership, 1917–2002

Labour Party membership, 1917–2002

The exact number of paid-up members of the New Zealand Labour Party has not always been publicly notified. As this graph, based on a variety of sources, shows, the party's membership has fluctuated greatly, broadly in line with the terms of office of Labour governments. However, during the 1980s and 1990s party membership plummeted to levels not seen since before the first Labour government took office in 1935. This reflected disillusionment on the part of many members with the neoliberal ‘Rogernomics’ policies of the fourth Labour government (1984–1990).

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Source: Bryce Edwards, 'Political parties in New Zealand: a study of ideological and organisational transformation.' PhD thesis, University of Canterbury, 2003.

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How to cite this page:

Peter Aimer, 'Labour Party - Ideology and the role of unions', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/graph/34047/labour-party-membership-1917-2002 (accessed 30 March 2024)

Story by Peter Aimer, published 20 Jun 2012, updated 1 Jan 2023