Labour's candidate, Brooks, was local; he was a senior clerk in the Picton manual telephone exchange and also had a small farm.

At the end of the campaign there was some criticism of Andy Shand for frequent "butting-in" during a combined television broadcast appearance for all the candidates on Wednesday 17 February.

But he found that party president Ned Holt was complacent about the by-election; saying that everything was in order, and that in any case National's majority in Marlborough was big enough to absorb any setback.

But on by-election night Labour inflicted a stunning defeat on National, reducing the Government majority from six to four, and shaking party confidence.

[13] Despite winning a surprise victory in 1969, National was so embarrassed from the by-election defeat it triggered the media to seriously speculate about Prime Minister Keith Holyoake's retirement.