Georgetown (House of Assembly of South Africa constituency)

Georgetown was a constituency in the Transvaal Province of South Africa, which existed from 1910 to 1920. It covered a part of the East Rand centred on the Georgetown section of Germiston. Throughout its existence it elected one member to the House of Assembly and one to the Transvaal Provincial Council.

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.^[1]

Like most of the East Rand, Georgetown's economy was dominated by mining, and its first MP, George Farrar, was a significant mine owner as well as a military officer. He died in 1915, and was succeeded by Hugh McAlister - both men represented the Unionist Party. In 1920, the seat was abolished and McAlister stood to represent neighbouring Germiston, but lost to the Labour surge on the Rand.

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