 Melville was active in the campaign that led to the Women's Parliamentary Rights Act, allowing women to stand for Parliament (women had already been able to vote for some time).In the 1919 general election, Melville was a candidate for the Reform Party in the electorate of Grey Lynn, where she placed second.In the 1922 general election, however, she was not selected as a candidate, allegedly being blocked by political organiser Albert Davy.