Research Paper Index

Research Paper no. 7 2008-09

House of Representatives by-elections 1901–2008

Scott Bennett, Politics and Public Administration Section
Gerald Newman, Formerly Statistics and Mapping Section
22 September 2008

Contents

Party abbreviations

AAP       Advance Australia Party
AC         Australian Constitutionalis
AFI        Australians Against Further Immigration
ALP       Australian Labor Party
ANAG   Australian National Action Group
AntiSoc  Anti-Socialist
AP          Australia Party
APPG     Australian Pensioner Pressure Group
AR         Australian Republican
ARM      Australian Reform Movement
ASP        Australian Shooters Party
Atok       Atokist
CDP       Christian Democratic Party
CCE       Conservatives for Climate and Environment
CEC       Citizens Electoral Council
Com       Communist Party
Cons      Conservative
Const     Constitutionalist
CP          Country Party
CRep      Constitutional Republican
CTA       Call to Australia
Dem       Australian Democrats
DLP       Democratic Labor Party
DOGS    Council for the Defence of Government Schools
DSP        Deadly Serious Party
EcRef     Economic Reform
FF          Family First
FishP      The Fishing Party
FLP        Federal Labor Party
FLR        Family Law Reform Party
FP          Farmers' Party
FPA        Federal Party of Australia
FST        Australia First Party
FT          Free Trade
Grn        Greens
Gry        Grey Power
GWA     The Greens (WA)
HAN      Pauline Hanson’s One Nation
HMP      Help End Marijuana Prohibition
HPA       Hope Party Australia
ICP         Independent CP
ILab       Independent Labor
ILCL      Independent Liberal Country League
ILib        Independent Liberal
INat        Independent Nationalist
Ind         Independent
LDP       Liberty and Democracy Party
LFF        Liberals for forests
Lib         Liberal Party
LibF       Liberal Forum
LLab      Lang Labor
LP          Liberal Party
LRG       Liberal Reform Group
NA         National Alliance
NAP       New Australian Party
Nat         Nationalist
NCPP     Non-Custodial Parents Party
NGST     No GST Party
NHP       National Humanitarian Party
NLP       Natural Law Party
NP          National Party
NSP        National Socialist Party
ON         One Nation
ONNSW One Nation NSW Division
PCP        Progressive Conservative Party
PLP        Progressive Labour Party
PORP     Property Owners’ Rights Party
PP          Progress Party
Prot        Protectionist
ProtLab  Protestant Labor
RARI     Reclaim Australia: Reduce Immigration
RPA       Republican Party of Australia
RSNP     Returned Soldiers National Party
SA          Socialist Alliance
SC          Social Credit
SLib       State Liberal
Soc         Socialist
SPA        Socialist Party of Australia
SWP       Socialist Workers’ Party
TA         Taxpayers' Association
UAP       United Australia Party
UM        Uninflated Movement
Unite      Unite Australia Party
UTG       United Tasmanian Group
UWU     Unemployed Workers Union
VFU       Victorian Farmers’ Union
VOTE    Voice of the Elderly

Introduction

This Research Paper details the 144 by-elections for the House of Representatives held to date, and includes some of the factors involved in their being held.

It also discusses relevant factors such as the timing of by-elections, the number of nominations, the voter turnout and party performance over the years, and the swings that have occurred.

The paper concludes with a general discussion of some of the personal and political aspects of the by-elections.

The organisation of Commonwealth by-elections

By-elections are held to fill vacancies in the House of Representatives resulting from the death, resignation, absence without leave, expulsion, disqualification or ineligibility of a Member:

• There have been 144 Commonwealth by-elections held since Federation.
• The first was held in the Queensland electorate of Darling Downs, on 14 September 1901, barely four months after the opening of the new Commonwealth Parliament.
• The most recent by-elections were held in the electorates of Lyne (NSW) and Mayo (SA) on 6 September 2008.

The reasons why by-elections have been held

Of the 144 by-elections, 67 (46.5 per cent) have occurred because of the death of the member, 71 (49.3 per cent) as the result of the resignation of the member, five (3.5 per cent) because of voided elections, and one (0.7 per cent) because of the expulsion of the member from the House (Kalgoorlie 1920).

The pattern has altered quite markedly, however:

• From 1901 to 1970, 63.3 per cent of all by-elections were brought about by death.
• By contrast, since 1971 86.7 per cent of all by-elections have been brought about by resignation.
• Murray Goot has noted a similar phenomenon in New South Wales by-elections, with 1969 the first year in which more by-elections were brought by resignation than by death—in Commonwealth elections this occurred just five years earlier.[1]

Various factors are probably relevant here.

Members today enter the House of Representatives at a significantly younger age than used to be the case. Of the 41 parliaments to date, the second quarter’s intake (1929–51) was the oldest, averaging 48.3 years per new Member. By contrast, the fourth quarter's intake (1977–2005) was the youngest at 42.2 years per new Member.[2] Another factor is the greater preparedness of Members to leave Parliament before death, quite often to pursue another career. This has been aided by a third consideration, namely the general increase in longevity of male Australians.

The timing of by-elections

The Constitution (s. 33) confers on the Speaker of the House of Representatives the power to issue a writ for the election of a new Member. The Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 specifies that the election must be held between 33 and 68 days from the date the writ is issued.

There is no prescribed time period within which a by-election writ must be issued, and, in fact, there is no accepted view as to the period that should elapse between vacancy and polling day.

Perhaps surprisingly, this has not become a matter of any long-term political debate, allowing governments a great deal of freedom in the setting of by-election dates. The length of time from a vacancy until polling day has therefore varied considerably, with the maximum number of days being the 82 days for Moreton in 1983, and the minimum being the 17 days for East Sydney in 1903.[3] The total elapsed time from vacancy to election has increased since 1901. Between 1901 and 1949, the average was 40.3 days, whereas during the period 1949 to 2008 the average has been 51.5 days. The average figure for all by-elections has been 47.0 days.

Ideally, by-elections are held as early as possible after a seat becomes vacant, ‘so that the electors are not left without representation any longer than is necessary’.[4] In fact, such a consideration is occasionally pushed aside by short-term political factors. On 22 October 1982, the member for Flinders (Phillip Lynch) resigned his seat. The Speaker fixed 4 December as the date for a by-election, but also declared that there would be a delay of three almost three weeks before the writs for the by-election would be issued. According to Anne Summers, this gave the Fraser Government the option of calling a general election for 4 or 11 December. The by-election could therefore have been pushed aside.[5]

In the cases of the eight by-elections held during 1994–5, the delay between the date of the seat becoming vacant and the date of the issuing of the writ varied considerably. The cases of Mackellar (35 days) and Kooyong (27 days) contrasted with the virtually instantaneous issuing of writs for by-elections in Fremantle, Boynthon and Warringah:

By-elections 1994–95

The variation that is allowed in regard to by-election dates is thus an anomaly in an electoral system that is generally highly regulated.

Appendix 4 provides details of the timing of all by-elections held between September 1901 and September 2008. It also shows the number of days elapsed between the seat becoming vacant and the by-election date, as well as the number of days elapsed since the previous general election, and the number of days between the by-election and the next general election.

There have been 20 occasions when the Speaker has in fact declined to issue such a writ for a by-election due to a pending general election. The longest period a seat has been without a member prior to a general election was 128 days in the case of Hindmarsh in 1909–10. The shortest period was the 39 days between the plane crash on 13 August 1940 that killed three MPs, and the election of 21 September 1940.

Vacancies for which no by-election was held 1901–2008

Number of nominations

The 141 by-elections have been contested by an average of 4.8 candidates. Over the years, however, there has been a steady increase in the number of nominations.

In the 24 First-past-the-post cases between 1901 and October 1918 the average number of nominations was 2.2 per contest.

In the 120 Preferential Voting cases there have been an average of 5.5 nominations per by-election:

• Between the introduction of Preferential Voting in December 1918 to the start of 1970, there was an average of 3.7 nominations per by-election.
• The 1970s and 1980s saw the first of two significant increases in candidate numbers, with 6.2 candidates per by-election over these decades.
• This was exceeded during the 1990s, with the average climbing to 8.1 candidates per contest.
• Since 2000 a further climb to 10.4 candidates per by-election has occurred.

The record number of nominations occurred in the 1992 by-election in the Victorian electorate of Wills, when 22 nominations were received to fill the seat vacated by former Prime Minister Hawke. The 2005 Werriwa by-election had 16 nominations, the second-highest on record.

Candidates per by-election

In only four cases, or 2.8 per cent, was a by-election contested by just a single candidate (Kalgoorlie 1913, Dalley 1915, Wide Bay 1928, Cunningham 1956).

In recent years there has been a tendency for governments to avoid contesting by-elections in their opponents' safe seats. Since 1990 the incumbent government has failed to contest 13 of the 22 by-elections held. In all cases bar one this has meant an easy win to the party holding the seat. In the case of Cunningham in 2002, however, the absence of a Liberal candidate helped the Australian Green candidate win the seat from the ALP.[6]

By contrast, the official Opposition has contested every by-election since Bradfield in 1952. In seven cases (4.9 per cent), over the whole period the Opposition has failed to contest a by-election (Darling Downs 1901, Echuca 1907, Dalley 1915, Echuca 1919, Wide Bay 1928, Balaclava 1929, Bradfield 1952).

Voter turnout

• During the period of voluntary voting (1901–24) the average turnout was just 54.0 per cent.[7] The lowest figure was 15.1 per cent (East Sydney 1903).
• Since the introduction of compulsory voting in 1924, the average by-election turnout figure has been 87.6 per cent. This contrasts with a 94.5 per cent turnout in general elections over that period.
• During the compulsory voting years, there has been a slight fall in the by-election turnout figure. Prior to 1970 the turnout in 62 by-elections was 88.5 per cent; the turnout for the 47 by-elections since 1970 has been 86.6 per cent. In the 22 contests between 1991 and 2008 the turnout has been 86.2 per cent.
• The lowest turnout figure for the compulsory voting period has been 69.5 per cent (Wentworth 1981). Remarkably, there have been three by-elections in this electorate in 1956, 1981 and 1995, with an average turnout of only 75.9 per cent.

Party performance

In 35 of the 144 by-elections (24.3 per cent) a seat has altered its party complexion:

Seats lost at by-elections 1901–2005

Note: By the time of the Grampians by-election of 1917, the Liberal Party had been subsumed by the Nationalist Party. This by-election is therefore not included as an occasion when the seat changed party hands.

Impact upon party

• Twenty-seven (18.8 per cent) by-elections have been lost by a major party to another major party.
• Four (2.8 per cent) have been lost by a major party to a minor party (Corangamite 1918, Echuca 1919, East Sydney 1932, Cunningham 2002).
• One (0.7 per cent) has been lost by a major party to an independent (Wills 1992).
• Two (1.4 per cent) previously held by independents were won by a major party (Franklin 1929, Henty 1946).

Impact upon Government/Opposition

In twenty-four by-elections (16.7 per cent) the seat has been lost by the government of the day.

• Five seats (3.5 per cent) have been lost by the opposition of the day (Riverina 1904, Kalgoorlie 1920, Maranoa 1921, Cunningham 2002, Lyne 2008).
• Four seats (2.8 per cent) have been lost by one Coalition partner to another (Wide Bay 1928, Darling Downs 1936, Calare 1960, Groom 1988). Note that the losses of Corangamite in 1918 and Echuca in 1919 by the Nationalist Party were both to the Victorian Farmers Union which shortly thereafter formed the Country Party. However, as there was no formal anti-Labor coalition at this time, these are not included here.
• Two seats (1.4 per cent) that had been held by an independent MP were won by the government of the day (Franklin 1929, Henty 1946).

In terms of winning seats from other parties, over the long haul the major non-Labor parties of the day have not done quite as well as their rivals:

Party win/loss performance at by-elections 1901–2008

* These figures include Riverina 1904, won by the Protectionists from the Free Traders.

On nine of the 34 occasions where a seat has changed party hands at a by-election (Boothby 1911, Swan 1918, Kalgoorlie 1920, Wakefield 1938, Wilmot 1939, Flinders 1952, Adelaide 1988, Canberra 1995 and Ryan 2001), the party that won the seat at the by-election lost the seat at the next general election.

The fact that relatively few seats have changed party hands in by-elections is probably due more to the propensity for by-elections to occur in safe seats, rather than any other factor. Political parties and individual members are only too aware of the possible political consequences of losing a seat at a by-election, and thus try to ensure that by-elections caused by resignation occur only in relatively safe seats. For example, since 1949, of the 56 by-elections that were caused by the resignation of the sitting member, only nine have been in marginal seats (i.e. seats requiring a swing of less than 6.0 per cent to change hands). By far the largest number of by-elections, 32, have occurred in safe seats (i.e. seats requiring a swing of over 10 per cent to change hands).

By-elections caused by resignation—safeness of seat 1949–2005

Of the 67 seats vacated by death, 15 have been lost by the party holding the seat, identical figures for the 71 seats vacated by resignation.

Analysing by-election swings since 1949[8]

Apart from a party’s success or defeat in a by-election, the most important aspect of a by-election is the swing that takes place. Conventional wisdom holds that there is usually a swing against the government of the day at a by-election. The success or otherwise of a government, opposition, or party leader at the by-election is often measured by the size of the swing in comparison with the average swing recorded in past by-elections. However, by-elections occur in varied and disparate electoral divisions, with different numbers and mixes of candidates, and with a variety of local, state and national issues involved. It could therefore be argued that given the variety of factors involved, there is no 'normal' by-election swing. By-elections are held in such varying circumstances that none can be regarded as typical, and it is generally agreed that any swing that occurs, is usually explained by the special factors pertaining to each by-election.[9]

By-election swings can be calculated by comparing the first preference and two-party preferred votes received by the various parties at the by-election, with the votes at the previous general election. The two-party preferred swing is more commonly used, as it overcomes some of the difficulties inherent in using first preference swings. First preference swings can be affected by the number and nature of candidates and parties contesting the by-election when compared with the previous general election.

Average first preference and two-party preferred vote swings for by-elections held between 1949 and September 2008 are given below. Swings cannot be calculated where one of the major parties (i.e. ALP or LP/NP Coalition) did not stand a candidate at the by-election or the preceding general election, or where the division was uncontested at the by-election or the preceding general election.

Average swings against government: by-elections 1949–2005

The average two-party preferred swing against the government of the day in all by-elections held during the period 1949 to 2008 was 4.0 per cent. The swing against ALP governments, 5.4 per cent, was somewhat higher than the swing against LP/NP Coalition governments, 3.4 per cent, while the swing against the government of the day in government-held seats was 5.0 per cent. The average two-party preferred swing in by-elections caused by the death of the sitting member was half the swing in by-elections caused by the resignation of the member.

Two-party preferred swings at by-elections during the period have varied from an anti-government swing of 16.1 per cent (Canberra 1995) to a swing of 16.2 per cent to the government (McPherson 1981). The largest swing against an ALP Government was the Canberra figure, while the largest swing against a LP/(CP)NP Coalition Government was achieved when Gough Whitlam won Werriwa in 1952 with a 12.4 per cent swing. Two-party preferred swings to the government of the day are a rare event in by-elections, with only ten being recorded during the period. The largest swing to an ALP Government was in Wills in 1992 with a 5.9 per cent swing (although the ALP lost the seat to an independent candidate, P. Cleary) while the largest swing to a LP/NP Coalition Government was in McPherson, referred to above. Because the number of candidates contesting a by-election is generally larger than the number contesting the previous general election, first preference swings against the government tend to be higher than two-party preferred swings.

Two-party preferred swings, By-elections 1949–2005

n.a. not applicable

Personal and political matters[10]

A stark listing of 144 electoral contests can disguise the fact that many of them involved noteworthy personal and political matters that are part of Australia’s political history. Some of these are referred to below.

The changing of the old guard

A number of members were senior politicians before they entered the national Parliament, with this latter service being the swan-song for a number of them:

• The death on 8 August 1910 of the only convict to enter the Parliament, William Groom, caused the first Commonwealth by-election to be held less than six months after the opening of Parliament (Darling Downs 1901).
• Three Constitution-writers died in the first decade after Federation, prompting by-elections: Edward Braddon (Wilmot 1904), Charles Cameron Kingston (Adelaide 1908) and Frederick Holder (Wakefield 1909). John Forrest (Swan 1918), by contrast, had enjoyed a much longer Commonwealth career, which included several ministries, with four periods as Treasurer.

Future Prime Ministers

Six future Prime Ministers entered the House of Representatives via by-elections. For Stanley Melbourne Bruce (Flinders 1918), Harold Holt (Fawkner 1935), Arthur Fadden (Darling Downs 1936) and Gough Whitlam (Werriwa 1952) this saw their entry into Parliament for the first time. James Scullin (Yarra 1922) had already served a term during 1910–13, while John Gorton (Higgins 1968) had recently retired from the Senate.

The passing of Prime Ministers

The passing from Parliament of fifteen of the twenty-five MPs who have held the office of Prime Minister has been the trigger for a by-election:

• In two cases (Wilmot 1939, Fremantle 1945) the by-election followed the death of the Prime Minister while in office—Joe Lyons and John Curtin, respectively. The by-election in Higgins in 1968 was caused by the disappearance while swimming, of Prime Minister Harold Holt.
• Ben Chifley (Macquarie 1951) and Billy Hughes (Bradfield 1952) remained in Parliament after losing office, and both died while still MPs.
• Some early Prime Ministers resigned from Parliament to assume other positions. Andrew Fisher (Wide Bay 1915) and Joseph Cook (Parramatta 1921) both became Australian High Commissioner in London. S. M. Bruce had lost his seat in 1929, returned to the House in 1931, and left Parliament for good when he was appointed as Resident Minister in London (Flinders 1933).
• Since the departure of Robert Menzies (Kooyong 1966), John Gorton and John Howard have been the only former Prime Ministers not to have caused a by-election by their departure from the House of Representatives. John McEwen (Murray 1971), William McMahon (Lowe 1982) and Gough Whitlam (Werriwa 1978) all remained in Parliament for a time after ceasing to be Prime Minister before resigning from the House. By contrast, Malcolm Fraser (Wannon 1983), Bob Hawke (Wills 1992) and Paul Keating (Blaxland 1996) all resigned their seats very soon after their loss of office.

The passing of leaders of the Opposition

Of the thirteen Leaders of the Opposition who have never become Prime Minister, the passing from Parliament of seven has caused a by-election:

• Frank Tudor (Yarra 1922) died in office.
• H. V. Evatt (Hunter 1960), Bill Snedden (Bruce 1983), Bill Hayden (Oxley 1988), Andrew Peacock (Kooyong 1994), John Hewson (Wentworth 1995) and Mark Latham (Werriwa 2005) all left Parliament between general elections.

Family matters

The retirement of both Alexander Downer sen. (Angas 1964) and Alexander Downer jun. (Mayo 2008) were both the occasion for a by-election to be held.

Many retiring MPs have been replaced by family members. In four by-elections such a generational transfer has been from father to son:

• Three were caused by death—Littleton Groom replacing William Groom (Darling Downs 1901), Bernard Corser replacing Edward Corser (Wide Bay 1928) and David Oliver Watkins replacing David Watkins (Newcastle 1935).
• The fourth father to son replacement was when Harry Jenkins senior became Ambassador to Spain in 1986. He was replaced by Harry Jenkins junior (Scullin 1986).

In two cases the family transfer has been from uncle to nephew:

• Herbert Pratten to Frederick Pratten (Martin 1928), and David Riordan to William Riordan (Kennedy 1936).

Famous entries into the House

Some MPs have achieved a national prominence prior to their election to the House of Representatives via a by-election:

• William Spence (Darwin 1917) had been a co-founder and long-time President of the Australian Workers' Union.
• Successive Queensland Labor Premiers, T. J. Ryan (1915–19) and Edward Theodore (1919–25) entered the House of Representatives as MPs for New South Wales seats—Ryan in 1921 for West Sydney, and Theodore for Dalley in 1925.
• Archie Grenfell Price (Boothby 1941), Master of St Mark's College, University of Adelaide, was a noted Australian geographer.
• Garfield Barwick KC (Parramatta 1958) was a leading Australian barrister.
• John Gorton (Higgins 1968), former prominent member of the Senate, entered following his replacement of Harold Holt as Prime Minister.
• Steele Hall (Boothby 1981) had been Premier of South Australia 1968–70, as well as a Senator for South Australia.
• Carmen Lawrence (Fremantle 1994) had been Premier of Western Australia 1990–3. Lawrence's success was the first by-election victory by a woman candidate.

Kicked upstairs?

Many MPs have been appointed to prominent positions, thus ending their parliamentary careers. Some have seen this as an ideal way in which to leave the political hurly-burly, while for others there has been a suggestion that this was a means to push a potential leadership contender out of the picture:

• By-elections were caused when Paul Hasluck (Curtin 1969) and Bill Hayden (Oxley 1988) accepted the office of Governor-General.
• Charles Abbott (Gwydir 1937) and Roger Dean (Robertson 1964) were both appointed Administrator of the Northern Territory, while Alex Wilson (Wimmera 1946) was appointed Administrator of Norfolk Island.
• Some sudden departures have been caused by appointment to the judiciary. Edward McTiernan (Parkes 1931) and Garfield Barwick (Parramatta 1964) joined the High Court. Supreme Court appointments have also been made: William Irvine (Flinders 1918) in Victoria, H. V. Evatt (Hunter 1960) in New South Wales, and Percy Joske (Balaclava 1960) in the Australian Capital Territory. Bob Ellicott (Wentworth 1981) was appointed to the Federal Court, while Lionel Bowen (Parramatta 1973) joined the New South Wales Court of Appeal.
• Various people have accepted ambassadorships: Richard Casey (Corio 1940) and Howard Beale (Parramatta 1958) to the USA, Hugh Roberton (Riverina 1965) to Ireland, Lance Barnard (Bass 1975) to Norway, Finland and Sweden, and Harry Jenkins senior (Scullin 1986) to Spain.
• By far the most-used diplomatic position for appointments of former MPs has been the High Commissioner position in London, with the appointment of eight former Members forcing by-elections. Former Prime Ministers Fisher (Wide Bay 1915) and Cook (Parramatta 1921) began the list, followed by Granville Ryrie (Warringah 1927), Thomas White (Balaclava 1951), E. J. Harrison (Wentworth 1956), Alexander Downer sen. (Angas 1964), Vic Garland (Curtin 1981) and Neal Blewett (Bonython 1994). Hubert Opperman (Corio 1967) became High Commissioner to Malta, while Les Johnson (Hughes 1984) became High Commissioner to New Zealand.
• Perhaps the most unusual of such official appointments was of A. I. Allan (Gwydir 1969) to the Secretary-Generalship of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Alexander Downer jun. (Mayo 2008) moved to the position of United Nations Special Envoy for Cyprus.

A matter of treason

On 7 November 1920 Hugh Mahon chaired a public meeting in Melbourne sponsored by the Irish Ireland League, and in a speech attacking the British presence in Ireland, spoke of ‘this bloody and accursed Empire’. His expulsion from the House of Representatives four days later for his 'seditious and disloyal utterances', was due to the House finding that he had been ‘guilty of conduct unfitting him to remain a member of this House’. Mahon's is the only expulsion to have occurred from the Parliament, and it forced a by-election (Kalgoorlie 1920). The House of Representatives lost this power with the passage of the Parliamentary Privileges Act 1987.

By-elections that caused ripples

Occasionally by-elections can be seen as having an importance beyond the immediate contest to fill a vacancy in the House of Representatives.

Some are a sign of things to come electorally:

• The by-election to replace Deputy Prime Minister, Lance Barnard (Bass 1975), gave a very clear indication of the decline in popularity of the Whitlam Government that was confirmed in the December 1975 election.[11]
• The by-election to replace former Hawke and Keating Minister, Ros Kelly (Canberra 1995), presaged the Keating Government's defeat in the March 1996 election.[12]

Other by-elections have had a different type of political impact:

• In late 1939, coalition negotiations between the United Australia Party and the Country Party broke down over Prime Minister Menzies’ insistence on his right to choose all ministers. The 1940 Corio by-election to fill the place of Richard Casey unexpectedly produced a Labor victory. According to former Country Party leader Earle Page this was instrumental in Menzies' weakening his stance and offering five Cabinet positions to the Country Party, with the leader of each party to choose his own party's representatives.[13]
• The Dawson by-election of 26 February 1966 was fought largely for Labor by the candidate, Rex Patterson, and the party's deputy leader, Gough Whitlam. The national leader, Arthur Calwell, was convinced that Labor could not win and took little part. To the surprise of many, Patterson was successful. Whitlam was due to come before the Federal Executive of the ALP on 2 March to face possible disciplinary treatment, possibly even expulsion. According to Graham Freudenberg, the last-minute change of stance of the Queensland delegates grateful to Whitlam for the Dawson result, saved his position—and possibly his political career.[14]
• Labor’s failure to win the seat of Flinders in a by-election of late 1982 was said to have had a double impact. Bill Hayden’s position as Labor leader became increasingly insecure, while Prime Minister Fraser apparently became convinced of the need for an early election before there was any chance of Hayden’s replacement by Bob Hawke. The consequential replacement of Hayden and the announcement of an early election on the same day were thus intimately connected with the by-election's outcome.[15]
• During 1993–4 much media discussion focussed on the possibility of Senator Bronwyn Bishop eventually assuming the leadership of the Liberal Party. When the seat of Mackellar fell vacant in 1994, Bishop secured Liberal preselection in an apparent move to clear the way for a push to the leadership. Labor did not contest the by-election and Bishop’s main rival was the writer, Bob Ellis, standing as an independent. Although Bishop won the seat comfortably with 52.2 per cent of first preferences, the Liberal first preference vote had fallen by 4.4 per cent. Although this was hardly a major loss of votes, her failure to increase her vote in the absence of a Labor candidate, was enough to end any chance she may have had for the Liberals' top job. As fellow Liberal, Peter Reith, put it, ‘Most people within the parliamentary party were of the opinion that Bronwyn didn't have any votes within the parliamentary party … if she didn’t have many before Saturday [i.e. the by-election], she hasn’t got any more today.’[16]

Voided elections

Some by-elections have been caused by the voiding of particular results after a general election: Melbourne and Riverina in 1904, Echuca 1907, Ballarat 1920 and Lindsay 1996.

The Wills by-election of 1992 was itself voided, but another by-election was not held because of the proximity of the next general election.

Appendix 1: House of Representatives by-elections, 1901–2008