1977 Pahiatua by-election

The Pahiatua by-election of 1977 was a by-election for the electorate of Pahiatua on 30 April 1977 during the 38th New Zealand Parliament.

Background
The by-election resulted from the resignation of the previous member Sir Keith Holyoake when he was appointed Governor-General.

Candidates
The Labour Party had seven candidates including:
 * Labour


 * Trevor de Cleene, a Palmerston North City Councillor and Labour's candidate for Pahiatua in
 * Dr Alan Levatt, a sociology lecturer at Victoria University
 * Paul Thornicroft, Labour's candidate for Pahiatua in

Levatt, who earned his Ph.D. from Michigan University and had previously lectured in American universities, was selected as the candidate.

Five candidates were shortlisted for the National nomination.
 * National


 * Graham Percy Adam, a company director and former Mayor of Eketāhuna
 * Garth Cassidy, a managing director from Waipukurau and member of the Hawkes Bay Harbour Board
 * John Falloon, a farmer from Masterton and the meat and wool chairman for the Wairarapa branch of Federated Farmers
 * Hamish Kynoch, a farmer from Ashley Clinton and runner-up for Young Farmer of the Year in 1972
 * Weston Macpherson, a farmer and chairman of the Norsewood branch of Federated Farmers.

At a selection meeting in the Pahiatua Town Hall four ballots were taken of National members. Kynoch was initially the frontrunner to win the nomination and lead the voting until the final ballot which selected Falloon as the candidate.

The Values Party selected Peter McHugh as its candidate. McHugh, a secondary school from Hastings, had stood as the Values candidate for Pahiatua in.
 * Values

Results
The following table gives the election results: