When the electorate was first formed, it mostly replaced the electorate, but also gained areas from the electorate (including Tapanui and Lawrence) and the coastal strip north of Dunedin from the electorate (including Waikouaiti, Palmerston, and Hampden). The main towns that came from the Otago Central electorate were Queenstown, Alexandra, Cromwell, and Wanaka. In the 1983 electoral redistribution, the southern boundary moved north and some towns transferred to the Clutha electorate, including Tapanui, Lawrence, and Roxburgh. To compensate, some outer suburbs of Dunedin on the northern part of Otago Peninsula were gained from the electorate, including St Leonards and Ravensbourne.