Division of Bennelong
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| Bennelong Australian House of Representatives Division |
|
|---|---|
| State or territory: | New South Wales |
| Created: | 1949 |
| MP: | Maxine McKew |
| Party: | Labor |
| Namesake: | Bennelong |
| Electors: | 97,573 |
| Area: | 58 km² (22.4 sq mi) |
| Demographic: | Inner Metropolitan |
The Division of Bennelong is an Australian electorate in New South Wales. The division was created in 1949 and is named for Bennelong, an Aboriginal man befriended by the first Governor of New South Wales, Arthur Phillip. Bennelong is based in Northern Sydney, including the suburbs of Eastwood, Carlingford, Epping and Ryde, and was held by the Liberal Party from its creation until its swing to Labor in the 2007 election. Between 1949 and 2007, Bennelong had only two Members.
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[edit] Electoral history
When the Division of Bennelong was created in 1949, it covered mainly the suburbs of Ryde, Hunters Hill, and Lane Cove, all of which were (and still are) relatively affluent areas, and as such it has historically been a "safe" Liberal seat.
Over the years Bennelong has evolved into a marginal parliamentary seat, and this has been attribued to two factors. Firstly, the electoral boundary of Bennelong has been redrawn ("redistributed") numerous times, to exclude the wealthy Lane Cove and Hunters Hill in the East, and to incorporate Eastwood, Epping, Carlingford and working class Ermington in the North and West. Secondly, the demographic has changed as well: since the early 1990s, Eastwood and surrounding suburbs have seen an influx of migrants from China, Hong Kong, South Korea and India, who are relatively affluent and conservative, but are sensitive towards political policies on immigration and multiculturalism.[1]
[edit] 2004 election
The two-party preferred vote for the Liberals declined 3.4% in the 2004 election, contrary to a strong national trend to the coalition (and a particularly strong one to the Coalition in outer-suburban metropolitan seats), making Bennelong a marginal seat at that time, with a margin of just 4.3%. The 2006 redistribution pushed this margin slightly further into Labor territory, due to the inclusion of the predominantly working class and public housing suburb of Ermington in Bennelong's boundaries.[2] The Greens increased their vote at this election by 12.34% to 16.37% at this election due to the preselection of the high-profile Andrew Wilkie.
[edit] 2007 election
In the 2007 election, the incumbent Member for Bennelong, then-Prime Minister John Howard, lost the seat to Labor candidate Maxine McKew, after holding it for 33 years. This was only the second time in Australian history that a sitting Prime Minister had been defeated in their own electorate, the first being Stanley Bruce in 1929.
In his national address conceding the election, Howard had admitted that it was "very likely" that he had lost the seat.[3] Following initial reluctance to officially call the outcome (despite confidence of success),[4][5] McKew declared victory officially on December 1.[6][7] At that time, the Australian Electoral Commission showed McKew ahead on a two candidate preferred basis, 43,272 votes to 41,159;[8] however, pre-poll, postal and absent votes were still being counted and could possibly have affected the outcome.
Howard formally conceded defeat in Bennelong on December 12.[9] The Electoral Commission has declared the seat, with 44,685 votes for McKew to 42,251 for Howard; voter turnout in Bennelong was 95%.[10]
[edit] Members
| Member | Party | Term | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Cramer | Liberal | 1949—1974 | |
| John Howard | Liberal | 1974—2007 | |
| Maxine McKew | Labor | 2007—present | |
[edit] Election results
| Australian federal election, 2007: Bennelong | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Liberal | John Howard | 39,551 | 45.49 | -4.14 | |
| Labor | Maxine McKew | 39,408 | 45.33 | +16.18 | |
| Greens | Lindsay Peters | 4,811 | 5.53 | -10.08 | |
| Christian Democrats | Robyn Peebles | 1,119 | 1.29 | -1.06 | |
| Democrats | Peter Goldfinch | 610 | 0.70 | -0.56 | |
| Family First | Lorraine Markwell | 289 | 0.33 | +0.24 | |
| Climate Change Coalition | Margherita Tracanelli | 269 | 0.31 | +0.31 | |
| One Nation | Victor Waterson | 261 | 0.30 | +0.23 | |
| Independent | Graeme Cordiner | 239 | 0.27 | +0.27 | |
| Independent | David L. Allen | 123 | 0.14 | +0.14 | |
| Yusuf Tahir | 97 | 0.11 | +0.11 | ||
| Liberty and Democracy | David Leyonhjelm | 89 | 0.10 | +0.10 | |
| Citizens Electoral Council | Gavin Spencer | 70 | 0.08 | +0.08 | |
| Total formal votes | 86,936 | 93.78 | -0.24 | ||
| Informal votes | 5,764 | 6.22 | +0.24 | ||
| Turnout | 92,700 | 95.01 | +0.02 | ||
| Two Candidate Preferred Result | |||||
| Labor | Maxine McKew | 44,685 | 51.40 | +5.53 | |
| Liberal | John Howard | 42,251 | 48.60 | -5.53 | |
| Labor gain from Liberal | Swing | +5.53 | |||
[edit] Polls
| Date | Poller | Coalition | Labor |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 October 1998 | 1998 election[11] | 56.03% | 43.97% |
| 4-5 April 2001 | Roy Morgan[12] | 57% | 43% |
| 10 November 2001 | 2001 election[13] | 57.70% | 42.30% |
| 9 October 2004 | 2004 election[14] | 54.33% | 45.67% |
| 14-15 February 2007 | Roy Morgan[15] | 45% | 55% |
| 9-10 May 2007 | Galaxy[citation needed] | 48% | 52% |
| 8-9 August 2007 | Galaxy[citation needed] | 47% | 53% |
[edit] References
- ^ The Battle for Bennelong: The adventures of Maxine McKew, aged 50something by Margot Saville, Melbourne University Press, 2007
- ^ Archive for the 'Federal Redistributions' Category. The Poll Bludger (2006-09-13). Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ Defeated Howard thanks Australia. ABC News (2007-11-25). Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ McKew refuses to call Bennelong. News.com.au (2007-11-25). Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
- ^ McKew confident but can wait to declare. The Australian (2007-11-26). Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
- ^ McKew declares victory in Bennelong. ABC News (2007-12-01). Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
- ^ Maxine McKew claims victory in Bennelong. The Sydney Morning Herald (2007-12-01). Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
- ^ House of Representatives Division First Preferences. Australian Electoral Commission (2007-11-30). Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
- ^ Finally, Howard admits McKew has it. The Sydney Morning Herald (2007-12-12). Retrieved on 2007-12-13.
- ^ House of Representatives Division First Preferences. Australian Electoral Commission (2007-12-11). Retrieved on 2007-12-13.
- ^ House of Representatives - Two Party Preferred Statistics by Division (1998). Australian Electoral Commission (2007-08-09). Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ "Safe" Liberal Seats Not So Safe According To Latest Bulletin-Morgan Poll.. Roy Morgan Research (2001-04-17). Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ House of Representatives: Divisional Results. Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ Bennelong - Divisional Profiles. Australian Electoral Commission (2007-10-15). Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- ^ Special Crikey Morgan Poll: Howard Would Lose Bennelong. Roy Morgan Research (2007-02-19). Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
[edit] External links
- Electoral Division of Bennelong (NSW) House of Representatives, Parliament of Australia.
- The Poll Bludger - Bennelong
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