Index cards. New Zealand electoral data., 1960s

This series records Chapman’s intense interest in electoral behaviour, the social and demographic factors which influence it, and the mechanics of the political process including the effect of electoral boundary changes. The material dates from his 1948 MA thesis on the 1928 election which spurred his interest in the electoral process. Includes: election analysis, correspondence, reports of selection meetings and interviews with candidates, surveys of public opinion (eg Heylen polls which RMC helped design), clippings, and a large amount of data extracted from polling booth results from the E9 and E39 parliamentary returns transferred to index cards, which he used to make much of the analysis. This is supported by a large number of maps used to identify electorates, polling booths, and monitor boundary changes. The methodology is complex, but some explanations of the various codes and formats used are provided in item 774 and item 859 (at front of this index card drawer).

There is some overlap with Series 4 Teaching Activities where research material has been used in lectures, and with Series 10 Broadcasting, where material such as scripts and correspondence were retained by RMC within electorate research files.