The Hokonui electorate in the Southland Region of New Zealand was formed for the 1881 election.
[2] The 1881 election was contested by Henry Driver, Cuthbert Cowan and Peter Finn, who obtained 527, 431, and 121 votes, respectively.
[3] Driver had previously represented the Roslyn electorate for four parliamentary terms.
[8] In the 1887 election, Cowan was challenged by Alfred Baldey, a farmer from Ryal Bush who was prominent in local Southland politics.
[10] At the end of the parliamentary term in 1890, the Hokonui electorate was abolished[11] and Cowan retired from Parliament.