CONTINUITY OR CHANGE - THE GEOGRAPHY OF THE LABOR VOTE AT THE NEW-ZEALAND GENERAL-ELECTION OF 1990

The defeat of the Labour government in New Zealand in 1990 followed La bour's unprecedented re-election three years previously on policies ve ry different from those traditionally associated with a Labour adminis tration. Results of that previous election, in 1987, were seen by some to represent quite fundamental changes to the basis of Labour support , as the 'demise of electoral cleavages', but by others as 'volatile s tability'. Focusing on the flow-of-the-Labour-vote between the 1987 an d 1990 elections, this study analyses the results of the 1990 poll for evidence of temporary deviating behaviour or fundamental socio-struct ural change affecting the New Zealand electorate in the late 1980s. Re sults show that volatile stability, or temporarily deviating electoral behaviour, was the major characteristic of this period, accompanied b y significant sectional (regional) effects.