Division of Robertson
Robertson Australian House of Representatives Division | |
---|---|
Created | 1901 |
MP | Lucy Wicks |
Party | Liberal |
Namesake | Sir John Robertson |
Electors | 111,255 (2019) |
Area | 980 km2 (378.4 sq mi) |
Demographic | Provincial |
The Division of Robertson is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales.
History[]
The division was proclaimed in 1900, and was one of the original 65 divisions to be contested at the first federal election. The division was named after Sir John Robertson, the fifth Premier of New South Wales.
Originally, Robertson was anchored in rural central NSW, encompassing the area around Dubbo, Mudgee and Wellington. It moved eastward to take in Gosford in 1913, and since then it has been moved further eastward in successive redistributions. By 1969, it had moved to approximately its current position on the Central Coast, immediately north of the Hawkesbury River, and now includes none of its original territory. Nonetheless, it has retained the name of Robertson, in part because the Australian Electoral Commission is required to preserve the names of original electorates where possible.[1]
It encompasses the towns of Woy Woy, Gosford and Terrigal.
Two of its members have served as Senators prior or subsequent to their tenures on Robertson. Former Senator Belinda Neal was elected in Robertson in 2007 and Deborah O'Neill became a Senator shortly after losing Robertson in 2013.
In recent years, Robertson has been a bellwether electorate in federal elections, taking on a character similar to mortgage belt seats on Sydney's outer fringe. It has been held by a member of the party of government since the 1983 federal election. In addition, after Mike Kelly became the first opposition MP elected to represent Eden-Monaro (in 2016) since 1975, Robertson currently holds the record for the longest-running bellwether seat in Australia.
The current Member for Robertson, since the 2013 federal election, is Lucy Wicks, a member of the Liberal Party of Australia.
The new bellwether[]
Ahead of the 2016 election, ABC psephologist Antony Green listed Robertson in his election guide as one of eleven which he classed as "bellwether" electorates. Prior to the 2016 election, the seat of Eden-Monaro was long regarded as Australia's most famous bellwether. From the 1972 election until the 2013 election – over 40 years – Eden-Monaro was won by the party that also won government. No longer the nation's famous bellwether seat after the Labor opposition won it at the 2016 election, the nation's new longest-running bellwether is Robertson – continually won by the party that won government since the 1983 election.[2]
Members[]
Image | Member | Party | Term | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Henry Willis (1860–1950) |
Free Trade | 29 March 1901 – 1906 |
Lost seat. Later elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Upper Hunter in 1910 | ||
Anti-Socialist | 1906 – 26 May 1909 | ||||
Commonwealth Liberal | 26 May 1909 – 13 April 1910 | ||||
William Johnson (1871–1916) |
Labor | 13 April 1910 – 31 May 1913 |
Lost seat | ||
William Fleming (1874–1961) |
Commonwealth Liberal | 31 May 1913 – 17 February 1917 |
Previously held the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Upper Hunter. Lost seat | ||
Nationalist | 17 February 1917 – March 1921 | ||||
Country | March 1921 – 16 December 1922 | ||||
Sydney Gardner (1884–1965) |
Nationalist | 16 December 1922 – 7 May 1931 |
Served as Chief Government Whip in the House under Lyons. Lost seat | ||
United Australia | 7 May 1931 – 21 September 1940 | ||||
Eric Spooner (1891–1952) |
United Australia | 21 September 1940 – 21 August 1943 |
Previously held the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Ryde and served as Deputy Leader of the United Australia Party in NSW. Served as minister under Menzies and Fadden. Lost seat | ||
Thomas Williams (1897–1992) |
Labor | 21 August 1943 – 10 December 1949 |
Lost seat | ||
Roger Dean (1913–1998) |
Liberal | 10 December 1949 – 30 September 1964 |
Resigned in order to become Administrator of the Northern Territory | ||
William Bridges-Maxwell (1929–1992) |
Liberal | 5 December 1964 – 25 October 1969 |
Lost seat | ||
Barry Cohen (1935–2017) |
Labor | 25 October 1969 – 19 February 1990 |
Served as minister under Hawke. Retired | ||
Frank Walker (1942–2012) |
Labor | 24 March 1990 – 2 March 1996 |
Previously held the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Georges River. Served as minister under Keating. Lost seat | ||
Jim Lloyd (1954–) |
Liberal | 2 March 1996 – 24 November 2007 |
Served as Chief Government Whip in the House under Howard. Served as minister under Howard. Lost seat | ||
Belinda Neal (1963–) |
Labor | 24 November 2007 – 19 July 2010 |
Previously a member of the Senate. Lost preselection and retired | ||
Deborah O'Neill (1961–) |
Labor | 21 August 2010 – 7 September 2013 |
Lost seat. Later appointed to the Senate in 2013 | ||
Lucy Wicks (1973–) |
Liberal | 7 September 2013 – present |
Incumbent |
Election results[]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal | Lucy Wicks | 45,011 | 46.86 | +2.18 | |
Labor | Anne Charlton | 32,761 | 34.10 | −4.33 | |
Greens | Cath Connor | 7,601 | 7.91 | −0.44 | |
Independent | David Abrahams | 2,915 | 3.03 | +3.03 | |
United Australia | Robert Marks | 2,702 | 2.81 | +2.81 | |
Animal Justice | Sean Bremner Young | 2,000 | 2.08 | +2.08 | |
Sustainable Australia | Judy Singer | 1,719 | 1.79 | +1.79 | |
Christian Democrats | Fiona Stucken | 1,352 | 1.41 | −1.25 | |
Total formal votes | 96,061 | 92.76 | −2.21 | ||
Informal votes | 7,493 | 7.24 | +2.21 | ||
Turnout | 103,554 | 93.17 | +0.65 | ||
Two-party-preferred result | |||||
Liberal | Lucy Wicks | 52,100 | 54.24 | +3.10 | |
Labor | Anne Charlton | 43,961 | 45.76 | −3.10 | |
Liberal hold | Swing | +3.10 |
References[]
- ^ "Guidelines for naming divisions". Australian Electoral Commission. 20 July 2011. Retrieved 30 March 2013.
- ^ The Bellwether Contests: Antony Green ABC
- ^ Robertson, NSW, Tally Room 2019, Australian Electoral Commission.
External links[]
- Electoral divisions of Australia
- Constituencies established in 1901
- 1901 establishments in Australia
- Central Coast (New South Wales)