women

The Act provided for women aged between 25 and 60 to have their names placed on the jury list on the same basis as men – if they so desired. The first female juror, Miss E.R. Kingsford, served at the Auckland Supreme Court in 1943. Read more...

New Zealand's first female military unit was complemented within 18 months by the Women's Auxiliary Army Corps and the Women's Royal Naval Service. Read more...

The Labour Party's Elizabeth McCombs became the first woman Member of Parliament, winning a by-election in the Lyttelton seat caused by the death of her husband, James McCombs. Read more...

New Zealand women went to the polls for the first time, just 10 weeks after the governor signed the Electoral Act 1893, making this country the first in the world to give all adult women the vote. Read more...

The governor, Lord Glasgow, signed a new Electoral Act into law, making New Zealand the first self-governing country in the world to grant all women the right to vote in parliamentary elections. Read more...

These petitions, signed by 9000 women, contributed to the introduction of a Female Suffrage Bill in Parliament. This received majority support in the House of Representatives but was defeated in the Legislative Council. Read more...

Kate Edger became the first woman in New Zealand to gain a university degree and the first woman in the British Empire to earn a BA. Read more...