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The 1947 Westland by-election was a by-election held during the 28th New Zealand Parliament in the South Island electorate of. The by-election occurred following the death of MP James O'Brien and was won by James Kent.

Background
James O'Brien, who was first elected to represent for the Labour Party in  and had been Westland's MP continuously since, died on 28 September 1947. This triggered the Westland by-election, which occurred on 3 December 1947. James Kent was the candidate for the Labour Party, and J. F. Lockington was the candidate for the National Party. Kent obtained 57.9% of the votes and was successful.