sentences:  While he had been a cabinet minister in the Domett Ministry (August 1862) and then the Whitaker–Fox Ministry (October 1863 – November 1864), he was a strong separationist, but did not get majority support in the ministries or from parliament as a whole, and he resigned his parliamentary seat in early 1865 as he could not achieve separation of the South Island.He first talked about having resigned in public on 6 January 1865 but the resignation did not take effect until 3 March of that year.Gillies then represented Mongonui 1870 (elected 30 March 1870; Parliament dissolved 30 December 1870) then Auckland West 1871 to 1875 (resigned); two electorates in the North Island.