Citizens for Rowling
The Citizens for Rowling campaign was a failed campaign to stop Robert Muldoon winning the 1975 NZ election. It was named after then Labour Prime Minister of New Zealand Bill Rowling in the lead-up to the 1975 general election. Members of the campaign publicly signed the "Citizens for Rowling" petition warning against a National government led by Robert Muldoon. The campaign was largely organised by David Exel, a former television producer and current affairs interviewer.
Central to the campaign was a booklet, in the form of a petition, which attacked Muldoon's leadership style, which was stated as being "divisive" and "moving towards factional strife". Ads were run in major papers around New Zealand asking people to 'stand up and be counted' as supporting Bill Rowling and the campaign. Many offshoot groups were formed, such as Lawyers for Rowling and Clergy for Rowling. Rowling's eldest son, Carl, also joined the campaign.
Prominent members
Prominent members of the campaign included:
- Geoffrey Palmer
- Sir Jack Harris
- Sir Edmund Hillary
- John Hinchcliff [1]
- Graham Nuthall
- Sir Paul Reeves
Outcome
Despite gaining a lot of press for Labour, the campaign did not succeed, with Muldoon launching a public denial of the claims and stating "The average chap doesn't want to be told how to vote."[2] Muldoon became Prime Minister.
References
- ^ The Listener, Ask that Philosopher, 1-7 May 2004, Volume 193, Number 3338 Source
- ^ Rowling: The man and the myth by John Henderson, Australia New Zealand Press, 1980
See also
- Bill Rowling
- New Zealand general election, 1975
- New Zealand Labour Party
- New Zealand National Party
- Robert Muldoon
Bibliography
- The Citizens for Rowling Campaign : An Insiders View pp 81-96, Political Science, Volume 28, No 2, December 1976.