1880 Rangitikei by-election

The 1880 Rangitikei by-election was a by-election held during the 7th New Zealand Parliament in the Rangitikei electorate of the North Island. This was the fourth by-election since the Rangitikei electorate was established for the 1861 election. The previous by-election took place in 1875 and the following one took place in 1892. Sir William Fox, Premier of New Zealand on four occasions, was elected to Parliament for his sixth and final time.

Background
Despite William Jarvis Willis' election to Parliament only one year earlier in the 1879 election, he resigned on 5 April 1880 due to poor health. A by-election was called for 8 May 1880 with former Premier of New Zealand William Fox, Marton politician Henry Lyon and Donald Fraser of Lower Rangitikei being the three candidates.

Results
Fox was elected to Parliament for a sixth and final term, serving as MP for Rangitikei until the 1881 general election. He was elected by a majority of 110 votes, or 25.88%, over runner-up Fraser.

Some electors in Turakina were unable to vote as the local polling station opened at 9:40 a.m. instead of the legally-mandated 9 a.m., leaving some electors with no opportunity to vote as they had to go back to their daily routines.