Losberg (House of Assembly of South Africa constituency)

Losberg
Former constituency for the South African House of Assembly
Province	Transvaal
Electorate	23,170 (1989)
Former constituency
Created	1910
Abolished	1994
Number of members	1
Last MHA	(CP)
Replaced by	Gauteng

Losberg was a constituency in the Transvaal Province of South Africa, which existed from 1910 to 1994. It covered a rural area adjacent to the western end of the Witwatersrand, and toward the end of its existence, was centred on the town of Fochville. Throughout its existence it elected one member to the House of Assembly and one to the Transvaal Provincial Council.

Franchise notes

When the Union of South Africa was formed in 1910, the electoral qualifications in use in each pre-existing colony were kept in place. In the Transvaal Colony, and its predecessor the South African Republic, the vote was restricted to white men, and as such, elections in the Transvaal Province were held on a whites-only franchise from the beginning. The franchise was also restricted by property and education qualifications until the 1933 general election, following the passage of the Women's Enfranchisement Act, 1930 and the Franchise Laws Amendment Act, 1931. From then on, the franchise was given to all white citizens aged 21 or over. Non-whites remained disenfranchised until the end of apartheid and the introduction of universal suffrage in 1994.

History

Losberg, like most of the Transvaal, was a conservative seat throughout its existence. For much of its history, it was a bellwether, being held by the governing party (or one of the governing parties) in every election from 1910 until 1981. It was notably represented early in its history by Louis Botha, who was Prime Minister between 1910 and 1919. In 1987, it was won by the Conservative Party, who held it in 1989.

Members

Election		Member	Party
	1910	T. F. J. Dreyer	South African
	1915	Louis Botha
	1920	T. F. J. Dreyer
	1921
	1924	G. P. Brits	National Party
	1929
	1933
	1938	member unknown	United Party
	1943
	1948		National Party
	1953
	1958
	1961
	1966
	1970
	1974
	1977	J. Janson
	1981	A. P. Wright
	1987	S. C. Jacobs	Conservative Party
	1989	member unknown

Detailed results

Elections in the 1910s

General election 1910: Losberg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	South African	T. F. J. Dreyer	Unopposed
	South African win (new seat)

General election 1915: Losberg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	South African	Louis Botha	1,451	65.0	N/A
	National	A. S. van Hees	780	35.0	New
Majority			671	30.0	N/A
Turnout			2,231	82.8	N/A
	South African hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1920s

General election 1920: Losberg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	South African	T. F. J. Dreyer	1,292	59.8	−5.2
	National	J. J. Pienaar	868	40.2	+5.2
Majority			424	19.6	−10.4
Turnout			2,160	74.4	−8.4
	South African hold		Swing	-5.2

General election 1921: Losberg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	South African	T. F. J. Dreyer	1,239	57.3	−1.5
	National	J. B. Wolmarans	924	42.7	+1.5
Majority			315	16.6	−3.0
Turnout			2,163	70.6	−3.8
	South African hold		Swing	-1.5

General election 1924: Losberg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	G. P. Brits	1,206	51.2	+8.5
	South African	T. F. J. Dreyer	1,150	48.8	−8.5
Majority			56	2.4	N/A
Turnout			2,356	82.1	+11.5
	National gain from South African		Swing	+8.5

General election 1929: Losberg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	G. P. Brits	1,156	50.8	−0.4
	South African	J. B. Wolmarans	1,118	49.2	+0.4
Majority			38	1.6	−0.8
Turnout			2,274	85.7	+3.6
	National gain from South African		Swing	-0.4

Elections in the 1930s

General election 1933: Losberg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	G. P. Brits	Unopposed
	National win (new seat)