Allan Rocher
Encyclopedia
Allan Rocher Australian politician, is a former Liberal Party of Australia
Senator for Western Australia
from 1978 to 1981 and member of the Australian House of Representatives
Division of Curtin
from 1981 to 1998. Up until 1996 he represented the Liberal Party of Australia
.
Rocher was born in Deloraine, Tasmania
. He worked as a commercial arbitrator and then as a registered builder. He eventually became president of the Master Builders' Association of Western Australia.
Rocher was elected as a Senator for Western Australia at the 1977 election
, taking up his seat on 1 July 1978. He won Liberal Party endorsement to contest Curtin at the Curtin by-election on 21 February 1981, following the resignation from Parliament of Victor Garland
. This preselection was also contested by fellow Senator Fred Chaney
. Rocher resigned for the Senate on 10 February 1981 in order to stand at the by-election, which he won. He held the seat until 1998. He was Shadow Minister for Defence Science and Personnel from August 1992 to April 1993.
Rocher lost Liberal Party endorsement for the seat prior to the 1996 election to Ken Court and then resigned from the Liberal Party. He successfully recontested his seat as an Independent in that election, winning with 29.4% of the primary vote and the aid of Australian Labor Party
preferences. He lost his seat at the following election in 1998, to Liberal candidate Julie Bishop
, his vote having dropped to 17.7%.
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
Senator for Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
from 1978 to 1981 and member of the Australian House of Representatives
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
Division of Curtin
Division of Curtin
The Division of Curtin is an Australian Electoral Division in Western Australia. The division was created in 1949 and is named for John Curtin, who was Prime Minister of Australia 1941-45. It is located in the wealthy beachside suburbs of Perth, including Claremont, Cottesloe, Mosman Park,...
from 1981 to 1998. Up until 1996 he represented the Liberal Party of Australia
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
.
Rocher was born in Deloraine, Tasmania
Deloraine, Tasmania
Deloraine is a town on the Meander River, in the central north of Tasmania, Australia. It lies 50 km west of Launceston and 52 km south of Devonport along the Bass Highway. It is part of the Meander Valley Council. At the 2006 census, Deloraine had a population of 2,243.The region was...
. He worked as a commercial arbitrator and then as a registered builder. He eventually became president of the Master Builders' Association of Western Australia.
Rocher was elected as a Senator for Western Australia at the 1977 election
Australian federal election, 1977
Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 December 1977. All 124 seats in the House of Representatives, and 34 of the 64 seats in the Senate, were up for election....
, taking up his seat on 1 July 1978. He won Liberal Party endorsement to contest Curtin at the Curtin by-election on 21 February 1981, following the resignation from Parliament of Victor Garland
Victor Garland
Sir Victor Garland KBE , usually known as Vic Garland, is an Australian former politician, Australian High Commissioner in the United Kingdom and director of many UK and US public companies. A Liberal Party member of the Australian House of Representatives, he represented the Division of Curtin in...
. This preselection was also contested by fellow Senator Fred Chaney
Fred Chaney
Frederick Michael Chaney, AO is a former Western Australian politician who, until April 2007, held the position of deputy chairman of the Australian Native Title Tribunal and is Chair of Desert Knowledge Australia and on the Board of Directors of Reconciliation Australia.Chaney was born in Perth,...
. Rocher resigned for the Senate on 10 February 1981 in order to stand at the by-election, which he won. He held the seat until 1998. He was Shadow Minister for Defence Science and Personnel from August 1992 to April 1993.
Rocher lost Liberal Party endorsement for the seat prior to the 1996 election to Ken Court and then resigned from the Liberal Party. He successfully recontested his seat as an Independent in that election, winning with 29.4% of the primary vote and the aid of Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
preferences. He lost his seat at the following election in 1998, to Liberal candidate Julie Bishop
Julie Bishop
Julie Isabel Bishop is an Australian politician and the current Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of Australia. She holds this title as the deputy leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. She is the party's first female Deputy Leader and the third woman in Australian history to...
, his vote having dropped to 17.7%.