General elections were held in

Northern Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in south central Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodes ...

on 20 March 1959,"Racial Issue In N. Rhodesia Elections: African Boycott", ''The Times'', 12 March 1959, p11, Issue 54407 although voting did not take place in two constituencies until 9 April. The

United Federal Party The United Federal Party (UFP) was a political party in the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. History The UFP was formed in November 1957 by a merger of the Federal Party, which had operated at the federal level, and the Southern Rhodesian ...

(UFP) was expected to win the elections, and did so by taking 13 of the 22 elected seats on the Legislative Council.

Electoral system

The elections were the first held under the Lennox-Boyd constitution."Election Move By Africans" ''The Times'', 23 December 1958 It provided for a 30-member Legislative Council with 22 elected members, six official members and two appointed members. The 22 elected seats were divided into 12 "ordinary" seats with mostly European voters, six "special" seats mainly reserved for African voters, two reserved for African candidates and two reserved for European candidates."Sir R. Welensky Gains Election Victory: Party Sure Of 13 Seats", ''The Times'', 23 March 1959, p10, Issue 54416 "Ordinary" voters had to have at least four years of secondary education and either an income of at least £300 a year or own property worth £500. They could also qualify by having primary education and earning at least £480 a year or owning £1,000 of property, or for those not meeting the educational requirements, have an annual income of at least £720 or own over £1,500 of property. Certain people were automatically entitled to register as "ordinary voters", including ministers of religion, chiefs recognised by the Governor and wives of anyone qualified as an "ordinary" voter (although in the case of polygamous marriages, only the senior wife qualified).David C. Mulford (1964) ''The Northern Rhodesian General Election 1962'', Oxford University Press, pp11−12 "Special" voters had to have at least two years of secondary education and an income of at least £120 a year, or have an income of at least £150 or own property worth £500 or more. Automatic qualification as a "special" voter was given to pensioners receiving a monthly or annual pension for at least 20 years' service for one employer, headmen or hereditary councillors with at least two years of unpaid service and who were recognised by their chief, or be the wife (or senior wife) of any qualified "special" voter. All voters had to be over 21, able to complete their registration form in English and have lived in the

Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation or CAF, was a colonial federation that consisted of three southern African territories: the self-governing British colony of Southern Rhodesia and the B ...

for at two years and in their constituency for three months. The African reserved seats were created by combining several ordinary seats, whilst the European reserved seats were based on combinations of the special seats. Every voter had two votes, one for their special or ordinary constituency member, and one for their reserved member. In the ordinary and European reserved seats, special votes were not allowed to account for more than a third of the total. A total of 30,234 people were registered to vote, up from 15,505 for the

1954 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1954. Africa * French legislative by-election, 1954 (Guinea) * 1954 Southern Rhodesian general election * 1954 Gambian legislative election * 1954 Gold Coast legislative election Asia * 1954 Iranian l ...

. Of the 23,388 "ordinary" voters, 20,546 were Europeans, 2,046

Indians Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

and 796 Africans. The 6,846 special voters included 6,821 Africans, 20 Europeans and five Indians."N Rhodesia's General Election: Full List of Candidates", ''East Africa and Rhodesia'', 12 March 1959, p821

Campaign

A total of 54 candidates contested the elections, of which 20 were African. Four parties ran in the election, with the UFP led by

John Roberts John Glover Roberts Jr. (born January 27, 1955) is an American lawyer and jurist who has served as the 17th chief justice of the United States since 2005. Roberts has authored the majority opinion in several landmark cases, including '' Nat ...

putting forward 18 candidates, the

Dominion Party The Dominion Party was a political party in the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, led by Winston Field. History The party was established in 1956 by a merger of several political groups and the remains of the Confederate Party, which had d ...

10, the Central Africa Party led by John Moffat seven and the Northern Rhodesian African National Congress led by Harry Nkumbula one (Nkumbula himself). Seventeen candidates ran as independents, with one running as a Central Africa Party independent. The

Zambian African National Congress The Northern Rhodesia Congress was a political party in Zambia. History The Northern Rhodesia Congress party was formed in 1940, as the Northern Rhodesia Congress (NRC) or Northern Rhodesia African Congress (NRAC). Godwin Lewanika, a Barotseland ...

, a breakaway from the NRANC, called for a boycott. The UFP were unopposed in two seats. No candidates were nominated for the Northern and Luapula Special constituencies, requiring nominations to be reopened until 19 March. The UFP held a centrist position, supporting dominion status for the

and opposing the British

Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of col ...

(reflecting the views of most white Northern Rhodesians). The Dominion Party put forward a right-wing platform including supporting a partition of the Federation into European and African areas. The Central Africa Party ran on a liberal platform.

Results

By voter roll

By constituency

By-elections

By-elections were held in the Luapula and Northern Special constituencies on 9 April.

Aftermath

Following the election, Governor Arthur Benson appointed six ministers; John Roberts as Minister of Labour and Mines, Ebden Carlisle as Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, William Gray Dunlop as Minister of Transport and Works, Rodney Malcomson as Minister of Local Government, Gabriel Musumbulwa as Minister of African Education and Edson Mwamba as Minister of African Agriculture."New Ministers For N. Rhodesia: Two Africans Included", ''The Times'', 28 March 1959, p5, Issue 54420

References

{{Zambian elections 1959 in Northern Rhodesia 1959 elections in Africa

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...