1904 Cape Colony parliamentary election

1904 Cape Colony parliamentary election
All 95 seats in the Assembly; 48 seats needed for a majority
	Green - Cape Progressive Party ; Blue - South African Party ; Grey - Independent
Prime Minister before election; Gordon Sprigg; Independent Progressive	Elected Prime Minister ; Leander Starr Jameson; Progressive

Elections for the House of Assembly were held in Cape Colony in 1904. The election was a victory for the Progressives under Leander Starr Jameson, who had first achieved prominence for his role in the ill-fated Jameson Raid.^[1]

The incumbent Prime Minister Gordon Sprigg had been elected in 1898 as a Progressive, however the Progressives had been wracked by internal divisions. Whilst most of the party had been able to reconcile under Jameson, Sprigg and his Commissioner of Public Works Arthur Douglass, had been forced to contest the election as Independent Progressives. Both of them would lose their seats to Progressive candidates. The election also saw former Prime Minister William Schreiner lose his seat.^[2]^[3] Sprigg would resign as Prime Minister some days after the last results were announced, and was succeeded by Jameson.^[4] Following the election James Tennant Molteno would be replaced by John X. Merriman as leader of the South African Party.

Thirteen constituencies were uncontested.^[5] Following the election of 95 members, Act 4 was passed, which gave a further twelve seats to the House. These were elected through by-elections in the same year.^[5]

Results


Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Progressive Party			50	+6
	South African Party			42	New
	Independent–South African Party alliance			2	–
	Pro-SAP independent			1	–
	Labour Party			0	New
	Other parties			0	–
Total				95	+16

Total votes		83,801	–
Registered voters/turnout		135,177	61.99
Source: Smith

Statistics

Constituency	Seats	Registered voters	Votes available	Votes cast
Albany	2	2,036	4,072	3,091
Albert	2	1,824	3,648	2,324
Aliwal North	2	1,452	2,904	2,271
Barkly West	2	1,953	3,906	2,246
Beaufort West	2	2,124	4,248	2,696
Caledon	2	2,478	4,956	3,469
Cape Town	7	17,131	119,917	43,108
Cathcart	1	1,171	1,171	814
Clanwilliam	2	1,713	3,426	Unopposed
Colesberg	2	2,184	4,368	3,062
Cradock	2	2,025	4,050	Unopposed
East London	3	4,697	14,091	5,036
Fort Beaufort	2	1,659	3,318	2,516
George	4	4,002	16,008	10,593
Graaff-Reinet	2	2,417	4,834	2,727
Graham's Town	2	1,837	3,674	1,834
Griqualand East	2	1,989	3,978	Unopposed
Humansdorp	1	1,395	1,395	Unopposed
Jansenville	2	1,937	3,874	Unopposed
Kimberley	4	6,404	25,616	12,683
King William's Town	3	2,800	8,400	3,449
Malmesbury	2	2,443	4,886	Unopposed
Mafeking	1	758	758	Unopposed
Middelburg	1	1,484	1,484	Unopposed
Namaqualand	2	2,016	4,032	3,133
Oudtshoorn	3	3,060	9,180	4,313
Paarl	3	2,864	8,592	6,890
Piquetberg	2	1,582	3,164	2,332
Prieska	1	1,029	1,029	736
Port Elizabeth	5	10,951	54,755	22,049
Queen's Town	3	3,617	10,851	5,514
Richmond	2	1,922	3,844	1,977
Riversdale	2	2,209	4,418	Unopposed
Simon's Town	1	1,634	1,634	1,104
Somerset East	2	2,577	5,154	4,300
Stellenbosch	2	2,195	4,390	3,559
Swellendam	2	2,695	5,390	3,605
Tembuland	2	2,789	5,578	4,079
Uitenhage	3	3,080	9,240	5,712
Victoria East	2	779	1,558	1,029
Victoria West	2	2,334	4,668	Unopposed
Vryburg	2	944	1,888	Unopposed
Wodehouse	2	2,001	4,002	2,663
Woodstock	3	6,442	19,326	8,176
Worcester	3	3,630	10,890	Unopposed
Wynberg	3	4,914	14,742	4,079
Total	107	135,177	437,307	187,169
Source: Statistical register of the colony of the Cape of Good Hope

References

^ John Charrington Smith, Alan (1980). General Elections in the Cape Colony: 1898-1908 (PDF). University of Cape Town.
^ Wills, Walter H. (2006). The Anglo-African Who's Who and Biographical Sketchbook, 1907. Jeppestown Press. p. 325. ISBN 9780955393631.
^ Switzer, Les (1993). Power and Resistance in an African Society: The Ciskei Xhosa and the Making of South Africa. University of Wisconsin Press. p. 159. ISBN 9780199296637.
^ Garner, James Wilford (1904). "Record of Political Events". Political Science Quarterly. 19 (2): 366. doi:10.2307/2140296. ISSN 0032-3195.
^ ^a ^b Statistical register of the colony of the Cape of Good Hope, piv

[1] John Charrington Smith, Alan (1980). General Elections in the Cape Colony: 1898-1908 (PDF). University of Cape Town.

[2] Wills, Walter H. (2006). The Anglo-African Who's Who and Biographical Sketchbook, 1907. Jeppestown Press. p. 325. ISBN 9780955393631.

[3] Switzer, Les (1993). Power and Resistance in an African Society: The Ciskei Xhosa and the Making of South Africa. University of Wisconsin Press. p. 159. ISBN 9780199296637.

[4] Garner, James Wilford (1904). "Record of Political Events". Political Science Quarterly. 19 (2): 366. doi:10.2307/2140296. ISSN 0032-3195.

[SR2-5] Statistical register of the colony of the Cape of Good Hope, piv

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]