Australian Capital Territory general election, 2004
Encyclopedia
Elections to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly were held on Saturday, 16 October 2004. The incumbent Labor Party
, led by Jon Stanhope
, was challenged by the Liberal Party
, led by Brendan Smyth
. Candidates were elected to fill three multi-member electorates using a single transferable vote
method, known as the Hare-Clark system. The result was a clear majority of nine seats in the 17-member unicameral Assembly
were won by Labor. The result marked the first time in the history of ACT self-government that one party was able to win a majority in its own right. Stanhope was elected Chief Minister
at the first sitting of the sixth Assembly on 4 November 2004. The election was conducted by the ACT Electoral Commission
and was the second time in Australia's history that an electronic voting and counting system
was used for some, but not all, polling places, expanding on the initial trial of the system at the 2001 ACT election
.
Australian Labor Party
, led by Chief Minister Jon Stanhope
, attempted to win re-election for a second term after coming to power in 2001
. Labor was challenged by the opposition centre-right
Liberal Party of Australia
, led by Brendan Smyth
, who assumed the Liberal leadership in November 2002. A third party, the ACT Greens
, held one seat in the Assembly through retiring member, Kerrie Tucker
.
The election saw all 17 members of the Assembly face re-election, with members being elected by the Hare-Clark system of proportional representation
. The Assembly is divided into three electorates: five-member Brindabella
(including Tuggeranong
and parts of the Woden Valley
) and Ginninderra
(including Belconnen
and suburbs) and seven-member Molonglo
(including North Canberra
, South Canberra
, Gungahlin
, Weston Creek
, and the remainder of the Woden Valley
). Election dates are set in statute to occur once every four years; the government has no ability to set the election date.
Following the 2001 election
outcome, Labor held eight seats; the opposition Liberal Party held seven seats; with the Greens holding a further one seat; and the Democrats
also holding one seat. In September 2002, Helen Cross
resigned from the Liberal Party, and remained in the Assembly, sitting as an independent
. Gary Humphries
, the former Liberal leader, resigned from the Assembly on 25 November 2002 to fill a casual vacancy in the Australian Senate
following the resignation of Margaret Reid
. Humphries was replaced in the Assembly by Jacqui Burke
who was sworn in on 18 February 2003.
Brindabella
Five seats were up for election. The Labor Party
was defending three seats. The Liberal Party
was defending two seats.
Ginninderra
Five seats were up for election. The Labor Party
was defending two seats. The Liberal Party
was defending two seats. The Australian Democrats
were defending one seat.
Molonglo
Seven seats were up for election. The Labor Party
was defending three seats. The Liberal Party
was defending three seats. The Australian Greens
were defending one seat.
In Brindabella
, Labor retained its three seats and the Liberals retained its two seats. Government minister John Hargreaves
and backbencher Karin MacDonald
were re-elected; with Mick Gentleman
replacing the retired former Government minister Bill Wood
. For the Liberal Party, leader Brendan Smyth
and shadow minister Steve Pratt
were both re-elected.
Labor gained a seat in Ginninderra
, where Democrats sitting member Roslyn Dundas
unsuccessfully sought re-election. The Liberals retained their two seats. Chief Minister Jon Stanhope
and Labor Speaker
Wayne Berry
were both re-elected, with Mary Porter
winning the additional seat for Labor. Both Bill Stefaniak
and Vicki Dunne
retained their seats for the Liberal Party.
In seven-member Molonglo
, there was no change to representation from the 2001 ACT election with both Labor and the Liberals retaining three seats, and the Greens retaining one seat. Labor Deputy Chief Minister
Ted Quinlan
, and ministers Katy Gallagher
and Simon Corbell
all won re-election. The Liberal benches saw the re-election of one member, Jacqui Burke
and two new members, Zed Seselja
and Richard Mulcahy
; following the retirement of longserving member and former Speaker, Greg Cornwell
. Helen Cross
, elected as a Liberal member at the 2001 ACT election, resigned from the Liberal Party in September 2002 to become an independent
. Cross failed to get re-elected at the 2004 ACT election. The Greens sitting member, Kerrie Tucker
, resigned from the Assembly less than one month before the election. The Greens endorsed Deb Foskey
, who was elected as the sole Green in the Assembly.
Electronic counting, which combines the counting of electronic votes and paper ballots, was first used in the ACT at the 2001 election and was again used in the 2004 election. In 2001 and 2004, preferences shown on paper ballots were data-entered by two independent operators, electronically checked for errors, and manually corrected if required. This data was then combined with the results of the electronic voting, and the computer program distributed preferences under the ACT's Hare-Clark electoral system. The software for the electronic voting and counting system was built using Linux open source software, which was chosen specifically for the electoral system to ensure that election software is open and transparent and could be made available to scrutineers, candidates and other participants in the electoral process.
was the last candidate indicated as elected in Molonglo on election night. After the full distribution of all preferences, the last position in Molonglo was taken by Liberal candidate Zed Seselja.
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...
, led by Jon Stanhope
Jon Stanhope
Jonathan Ronald Stanhope is a former Australian politician who was Labor Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory from 2001 to 2011. Stanhope represented the Ginninderra electorate in the ACT Legislative Assembly from 1998 until 2011. He resigned as Chief Minister on 12 May 2011 and as...
, was challenged by the Liberal Party
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...
, led by Brendan Smyth
Brendan Smyth (politician)
Brendan Michael Smyth is a Liberal Party of Australia politician. From 2002 to 2006 he was the Leader of the Opposition in the Australian Capital Territory. He retains his shadow previous portfolios of Health, Ageing, Business and Tourism at present. He represents the electorate of...
. Candidates were elected to fill three multi-member electorates using a single transferable vote
Single transferable vote
The single transferable vote is a voting system designed to achieve proportional representation through preferential voting. Under STV, an elector's vote is initially allocated to his or her most preferred candidate, and then, after candidates have been either elected or eliminated, any surplus or...
method, known as the Hare-Clark system. The result was a clear majority of nine seats in the 17-member unicameral Assembly
Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly
The Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory...
were won by Labor. The result marked the first time in the history of ACT self-government that one party was able to win a majority in its own right. Stanhope was elected Chief Minister
Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory
The Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory is the head of government of the Australian Capital Territory. The leader of party with the largest representation of seats in the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly usually takes on the role...
at the first sitting of the sixth Assembly on 4 November 2004. The election was conducted by the ACT Electoral Commission
Australian Capital Territory Electoral Commission
The Australian Capital Territory Electoral Commission is the agency of the Government of the Australian Capital Territory with responsibility for the conduct of elections and referendums for the unicameral ACT Legislative Assembly; the determination of electoral boundaries for the ACT; and the...
and was the second time in Australia's history that an electronic voting and counting system
Electronic voting
Electronic voting is a term encompassing several different types of voting, embracing both electronic means of casting a vote and electronic means of counting votes....
was used for some, but not all, polling places, expanding on the initial trial of the system at the 2001 ACT election
Australian Capital Territory general election, 2001
Elections to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly were held on Saturday, 20 October 2001. The incumbent Liberal Party, led by Gary Humphries, was challenged by the Labor Party, led by Jon Stanhope. candidates were elected to fill three multi-member electorates using a single...
.
Key dates
- Last day to lodge applications for party register: 30 June 2004
- Party registration closed: 9 September 2004
- Pre-election period commenced and nominations opened: 10 September 2004
- Rolls closed: 17 September 2004
- Nominations closed: 22 September 2004
- Nominations declared and ballot paper order determined: 23 September 2004
- Pre-poll voting commenced: 27 September 2004
- Polling day: 16 October 2004
- Scrutiny completed: 27 October 2004
- Poll declared: 29 October 2004
- Legislative Assembly formed: 4 November 2004
Overview
The incumbent centre-leftCentre-left
Centre-left is a political term that describes individuals, political parties or organisations such as think tanks whose ideology lies between the centre and the left on the left-right spectrum...
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...
, led by Chief Minister Jon Stanhope
Jon Stanhope
Jonathan Ronald Stanhope is a former Australian politician who was Labor Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory from 2001 to 2011. Stanhope represented the Ginninderra electorate in the ACT Legislative Assembly from 1998 until 2011. He resigned as Chief Minister on 12 May 2011 and as...
, attempted to win re-election for a second term after coming to power in 2001
Australian Capital Territory general election, 2001
Elections to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly were held on Saturday, 20 October 2001. The incumbent Liberal Party, led by Gary Humphries, was challenged by the Labor Party, led by Jon Stanhope. candidates were elected to fill three multi-member electorates using a single...
. Labor was challenged by the opposition centre-right
Centre-right
The centre-right or center-right is a political term commonly used to describe or denote individuals, political parties, or organizations whose views stretch from the centre to the right on the left-right spectrum, excluding far right stances. Centre-right can also describe a coalition of centrist...
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...
, led by Brendan Smyth
Brendan Smyth (politician)
Brendan Michael Smyth is a Liberal Party of Australia politician. From 2002 to 2006 he was the Leader of the Opposition in the Australian Capital Territory. He retains his shadow previous portfolios of Health, Ageing, Business and Tourism at present. He represents the electorate of...
, who assumed the Liberal leadership in November 2002. A third party, the ACT Greens
ACT Greens
The ACT Greens is a green political party located in the Australian Capital Territory, and a member of the federation of the Australian Greens....
, held one seat in the Assembly through retiring member, Kerrie Tucker
Kerrie Tucker
Kerrie Robyn Tucker , former Australian politician, environmental and human rights activist, was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the multi-member electorate of Molonglo for the ACT Greens between 1995 and 2001...
.
The election saw all 17 members of the Assembly face re-election, with members being elected by the Hare-Clark system of proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
. The Assembly is divided into three electorates: five-member Brindabella
Brindabella electorate
The Brindabella electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has five seats, and is the largest of the electorates in geographic area.-History:...
(including Tuggeranong
Tuggeranong
Tuggeranong is the southernmost town centre of Canberra, the capital city of Australia. It comprises 19 suburbs with a total of 31,819 dwellings, housing 87,119 people of the 324,034 people in the Australian Capital Territory . The district occupies 117 square kilometres to the east of the...
and parts of the Woden Valley
Woden Valley
Woden Valley is a district of Canberra, the capital city of Australia. Its name is taken from the name of a nearby homestead owned by Dr James Murray who named the homestead after the Old English god Woden in October 1837. He named it this as he was to spend his life in the pursuit of wisdom and...
) and Ginninderra
Ginninderra electorate
The Ginninderra electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has five seats, and is the smallest of the electorates in geographic area.-History:...
(including Belconnen
Belconnen
Belconnen is a district of Canberra, the capital city of Australia, comprising 25 suburbs with 29,900 dwellings housing 82,247 people of the 311,518 people in the Australian Capital Territory ....
and suburbs) and seven-member Molonglo
Molonglo electorate
The Molonglo electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has seven seats, and is the largest of the electorates in terms of population.-History:...
(including North Canberra
North Canberra
North Canberra, also known as the Inner North, is a district of Canberra, the capital city of Australia, comprising 14 suburbs with 19,115 dwellings housing 42,113 people of the 324,034 people in the Australian Capital Territory...
, South Canberra
South Canberra
South Canberra or the Inner South is a central district of Canberra, the capital city of Australia.South Canberra is located to the south of Canberra's city centre, on the south bank of Lake Burley Griffin....
, Gungahlin
Gungahlin
Gungahlin is a name of a district and the northernmost town centre of Canberra, Australia. Gungahlin is situated 10 km north of Canberra's city centre and is one of five satellites of Canberra including Woden, Tuggeranong, Weston Creek and Belconnen. Currently Gungahlin comprises 11 suburbs,...
, Weston Creek
Weston Creek
Weston Creek is a residential district of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, situated to the west of the Woden Valley district and approximately 13 km southwest of the Canberra city centre...
, and the remainder of the Woden Valley
Woden Valley
Woden Valley is a district of Canberra, the capital city of Australia. Its name is taken from the name of a nearby homestead owned by Dr James Murray who named the homestead after the Old English god Woden in October 1837. He named it this as he was to spend his life in the pursuit of wisdom and...
). Election dates are set in statute to occur once every four years; the government has no ability to set the election date.
Following the 2001 election
Australian Capital Territory general election, 2001
Elections to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly were held on Saturday, 20 October 2001. The incumbent Liberal Party, led by Gary Humphries, was challenged by the Labor Party, led by Jon Stanhope. candidates were elected to fill three multi-member electorates using a single...
outcome, Labor held eight seats; the opposition Liberal Party held seven seats; with the Greens holding a further one seat; and the Democrats
Australian Democrats
The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader...
also holding one seat. In September 2002, Helen Cross
Helen Cross (politician)
Helen Cross is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Molonglo, initially for the Liberal Party of Australia, and then later as an Independent. Cross was elected to the ACT Legislative Assembly at the 2001...
resigned from the Liberal Party, and remained in the Assembly, sitting as an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
. Gary Humphries
Gary Humphries
Gary John Joseph Humphries has been a member of the Australian Senate representing the Australian Capital Territory for the Liberal Party of Australia since 2003...
, the former Liberal leader, resigned from the Assembly on 25 November 2002 to fill a casual vacancy in the Australian Senate
Australian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...
following the resignation of Margaret Reid
Margaret Reid
Margaret Elizabeth Reid AO is a former Australian politician. She was the first woman to be President of the Australian Senate.-Early years:...
. Humphries was replaced in the Assembly by Jacqui Burke
Jacqui Burke
Jacqui Burke is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Molonglo for the Australian Liberal Party...
who was sworn in on 18 February 2003.
Candidates
Sitting members at the time of the election are in bold. Tickets that elected at least one MLA are highlighted in the relevant colour. Successful candidates are indicated by an asterisk (*).BrindabellaBrindabella electorateThe Brindabella electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has five seats, and is the largest of the electorates in geographic area.-History:...
Five seats were up for election. The Labor PartyAustralian 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...
was defending three seats. The Liberal Party
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...
was defending two seats.
| Labor 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... Candidates |
Liberal 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... Candidates |
Greens Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which... Candidates |
Democrats Australian Democrats The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader... Candidates |
LDP Liberal Democratic Party (Australia) The Liberal Democratic Party is a classical liberal Australian political party founded in 2001.-Party name:In 2007 the party tried to register federally under the name "Liberal Democratic Party" but this was opposed the by the Liberal Party, so the party chose to register as the "Liberty and... Candidates |
CDP Christian Democratic Party (Australia) The Christian Democratic Party is a right-wing political party in Australia. Its leader is Fred Nile, a Congregational Church minister and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council.-Formation:... Candidates |
Ungrouped Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mick Gentleman Mick Gentleman Mick Gentleman is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Brindabella for the Australian Labor Party from 2004 to 2008... * John Hargreaves John Hargreaves (politician) John Leo Hargreaves is an Australian politician. He has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 1998... * Paschal Leahy Rebecca Logue Karin MacDonald Karin MacDonald Karin MacDonald is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Brindabella for the Australian Labor Party. MacDonald was elected at the 2001 ACT general election and retired at the 2008 ACT general... * |
Steve Doszpot Steve Doszpot Steve Doszpot is an Australian politician with the Liberal Party of Australia, elected to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly in the Brindabella electorate at the 2008 election.... Steve Pratt Steve Pratt Stephen George "Steve" Pratt is a former Australian military officer, aid worker and Liberal politician in the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly for the electorate of Brindabella.- Early career :... * Megan Purcell Karen Schilling Brendan Smyth Brendan Smyth (politician) Brendan Michael Smyth is a Liberal Party of Australia politician. From 2002 to 2006 he was the Leader of the Opposition in the Australian Capital Territory. He retains his shadow previous portfolios of Health, Ageing, Business and Tourism at present. He represents the electorate of... * |
Graham Jensen Kathryn Kelly |
Rowena Bew Marc Emerson |
David Garrett Matthew Harding |
Erol Byrne Thelma Janes |
Burl Doble (Ind Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... ) Stephanie Elliott (FRC) Lance Muir (EQP) |
GinninderraGinninderra electorateThe Ginninderra electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has five seats, and is the smallest of the electorates in geographic area.-History:...
Five seats were up for election. The Labor PartyAustralian 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...
was defending two seats. The Liberal Party
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...
was defending two seats. The Australian Democrats
Australian Democrats
The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader...
were defending one seat.
| Labor 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... Candidates |
Liberal 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... Candidates |
Greens Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which... Candidates |
Democrats Australian Democrats The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader... Candidates |
LDP Liberal Democratic Party (Australia) The Liberal Democratic Party is a classical liberal Australian political party founded in 2001.-Party name:In 2007 the party tried to register federally under the name "Liberal Democratic Party" but this was opposed the by the Liberal Party, so the party chose to register as the "Liberty and... Candidates |
Hird Inds Harold Hird Harold James Hird , an Australian politician, was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Ginninderra for the Liberal Party of Australia from 1995 to 2001... Candidates |
Free Range Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wayne Berry Wayne Berry Wayne Bruce Berry , former Australian politician, was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly from 1989 to 2008, representing the electorate of Ginninderra for the Australian Labor Party... * Ross Maxwell Susan McCarthy Mary Porter Mary Porter (politician) Mary Edith Porter AM is a Labor member of the ACT Assembly. She was first elected to the Assembly in October 2004. Prior to that, she was CEO of the Volunteering Association from 1993 until October 2004... * Jon Stanhope Jon Stanhope Jonathan Ronald Stanhope is a former Australian politician who was Labor Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory from 2001 to 2011. Stanhope represented the Ginninderra electorate in the ACT Legislative Assembly from 1998 until 2011. He resigned as Chief Minister on 12 May 2011 and as... * |
Briant Clark Vicki Dunne Vicki Dunne Vicki Ann Dunne , an Australian politician, is a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, since 2001, representing the electoral district of Ginninderra for the Liberal Party.... * Ilona Fraser Bob Sobey Bill Stefaniak Bill Stefaniak William George "Bill" Stefaniak is an Australian Liberal Party politician. He was the Leader of the Opposition in the Australian Capital Territory after succeeding in a leadership challenge against former leader Brendan Smyth on 16 May 2006. He is a former Major in the Australian Army Reserve and... * |
Meredith Hunter Meredith Hunter Meredith Curly Hunter was a male spectator at the Altamont Free Concert. During the performance by The Rolling Stones, Hunter pulled out a gun after being punched by a Hells Angel and was then stabbed to death by a Hells Angel serving as a security guard... Ben O'Callaghan |
Roslyn Dundas Roslyn Dundas Roslyn Dundas is an Australian politician. She was an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly from 2001 to 2004, when she was defeated in a bid for re-election... Roberta Wood |
Rose Pappalardo Adam Porter |
Harold Hird Harold Hird Harold James Hird , an Australian politician, was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Ginninderra for the Liberal Party of Australia from 1995 to 2001... Julie-Anne Papathanasiou |
Anne Moore Mike O'Shaughnessy |
| Group E Candidates | Ungrouped Candidates | |||||
John Gorman Darcy Henry |
John Simsons (EQP) |
MolongloMolonglo electorateThe Molonglo electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has seven seats, and is the largest of the electorates in terms of population.-History:...
Seven seats were up for election. The Labor PartyAustralian 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...
was defending three seats. The Liberal Party
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...
was defending three seats. The Australian Greens
Australian Greens
The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...
were defending one seat.
| Labor 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... Candidates |
Liberal 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... Candidates |
Greens Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which... Candidates |
Democrats Australian Democrats The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader... Candidates |
LDP Liberal Democratic Party (Australia) The Liberal Democratic Party is a classical liberal Australian political party founded in 2001.-Party name:In 2007 the party tried to register federally under the name "Liberal Democratic Party" but this was opposed the by the Liberal Party, so the party chose to register as the "Liberty and... Candidates |
Cross Inds Helen Cross (politician) Helen Cross is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Molonglo, initially for the Liberal Party of Australia, and then later as an Independent. Cross was elected to the ACT Legislative Assembly at the 2001... Candidates |
Free Range Candidates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Andrew Barr Andrew Barr Andrew Barr is an Australian politician and Deputy Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory. He has been an Australian Labor Party member for the seat of Molonglo in the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 5 April 2006, after being elected on a countback to replace... Adina Cirson Simon Corbell Simon Corbell Simon Corbell is an Australian politician in the Australian Capital Territory, and is one of the seven members of the Legislative Assembly electorate of Molonglo, representing the Australian Labor Party... * Katy Gallagher Katy Gallagher Katy Gallagher , an Australian politician, is the sixth and current Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory and a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2001, representing the electorate of Molonglo for the Australian Labor Party... * Mike Hettinger Mike Hettinger Mike Hettinger is a Labor political activist in the Australian Capital Territory and a candidate for the seat of Molonglo in the 2008 election for the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly.... Ted Quinlan Ted Quinlan Edward Andrew John "Ted" Quinlan is an Australian politician. He was an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly from 1998 to 2006, representing the district of Molonglo.... * Kim Sattler |
Lucille Bailie Jacqui Burke Jacqui Burke Jacqui Burke is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Molonglo for the Australian Liberal Party... * Ron Forrester David Kibbey Richard Mulcahy Richard Mulcahy (Australian politician) Richard John Mulcahy , a former Australian politician was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly for one term, from 2004 to 2008, representing the Liberal Patry and later as an independent.... * Gordon Scott Zed Seselja Zed Seselja Zed Seselja is a Liberal Party Australian politician. He has been a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2004. He has been the territory's 12th Opposition Leader since December 2007, when he was appointed to the position following the resignation of Bill Stefaniak... * |
Amanda Bresnan Amanda Bresnan Amanda Bresnan is an Australian politician and a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. Bresnan was elected to the ACT Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Brindabella for the ACT Greens at the 2008 election-Early life and education:Amanda Bresnan was... Deb Foskey Deb Foskey Deb Foskey is a former Australian politician with the ACT Greens. She was elected to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly in the 2004 election for the electorate of Molonglo, in which she served until her retirement in 2008.-Early life:Foskey was born in rural East Gippsland,... * Charlie Pahlman |
Fred Leftwich Robert Rose |
John Humphreys Melanie Sutcliffe |
Helen Cross Helen Cross (politician) Helen Cross is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Molonglo, initially for the Liberal Party of Australia, and then later as an Independent. Cross was elected to the ACT Legislative Assembly at the 2001... Renee Stramandinoli |
Simone Gray Jo McKinley |
| Equality Candidates | Group C Candidates | Ungrouped Candidates | ||||
Nancy-Louise McCullough Jonathon Reynolds |
John Farrell Robert Fearn |
Tony Farrell Luke Garner Ken Helm Kurt Kennedy |
Results
On election night 16 October 2004, four hours after the close of polling, with 78 per cent of the vote counted, Liberal leader, Brendan Smyth, conceded defeat to Labor. Smyth conceded that the incumbent Labor Government had been returned for a second term and appeared set to win the Territory's first ever majority mandate. Labor had obtained 47 per cent of the vote across the ACT, with the Liberals at 34.8 per cent and the Greens at 9.2 per cent. Swings were recorded towards Labor (+5.3 per cent), Liberal (+3.2 per cent) and the ACT Greens (+0.1 per cent). Support for the Democrats collapsed and they lost their one and only seat. Counting continued up until 27 October 2004, when all preferences were distributed, resulting in Labor winning nine seats, the Liberals winning seven seats, while the Greens won one seat. The ACT Electoral Commission determined and announced the election's final results on 29 October 2004. The result marked the first time in the history of ACT self-government that one party was able to win a majority in its own right.In Brindabella
Brindabella electorate
The Brindabella electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has five seats, and is the largest of the electorates in geographic area.-History:...
, Labor retained its three seats and the Liberals retained its two seats. Government minister John Hargreaves
John Hargreaves (politician)
John Leo Hargreaves is an Australian politician. He has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 1998...
and backbencher Karin MacDonald
Karin MacDonald
Karin MacDonald is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Brindabella for the Australian Labor Party. MacDonald was elected at the 2001 ACT general election and retired at the 2008 ACT general...
were re-elected; with Mick Gentleman
Mick Gentleman
Mick Gentleman is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Brindabella for the Australian Labor Party from 2004 to 2008...
replacing the retired former Government minister Bill Wood
Bill Wood (politician)
Bill Wood is an Australian politician who was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly and later the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. He was elected to the Queensland Parliament as the Labor member for Cook in 1969, transferring in 1972 to the new seat of Barron River. He...
. For the Liberal Party, leader Brendan Smyth
Brendan Smyth (politician)
Brendan Michael Smyth is a Liberal Party of Australia politician. From 2002 to 2006 he was the Leader of the Opposition in the Australian Capital Territory. He retains his shadow previous portfolios of Health, Ageing, Business and Tourism at present. He represents the electorate of...
and shadow minister Steve Pratt
Steve Pratt
Stephen George "Steve" Pratt is a former Australian military officer, aid worker and Liberal politician in the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly for the electorate of Brindabella.- Early career :...
were both re-elected.
Labor gained a seat in Ginninderra
Ginninderra electorate
The Ginninderra electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has five seats, and is the smallest of the electorates in geographic area.-History:...
, where Democrats sitting member Roslyn Dundas
Roslyn Dundas
Roslyn Dundas is an Australian politician. She was an Australian Democrats member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly from 2001 to 2004, when she was defeated in a bid for re-election...
unsuccessfully sought re-election. The Liberals retained their two seats. Chief Minister Jon Stanhope
Jon Stanhope
Jonathan Ronald Stanhope is a former Australian politician who was Labor Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory from 2001 to 2011. Stanhope represented the Ginninderra electorate in the ACT Legislative Assembly from 1998 until 2011. He resigned as Chief Minister on 12 May 2011 and as...
and Labor Speaker
Speaker of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly
The Speaker of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly is the presiding officer of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory....
Wayne Berry
Wayne Berry
Wayne Bruce Berry , former Australian politician, was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly from 1989 to 2008, representing the electorate of Ginninderra for the Australian Labor Party...
were both re-elected, with Mary Porter
Mary Porter (politician)
Mary Edith Porter AM is a Labor member of the ACT Assembly. She was first elected to the Assembly in October 2004. Prior to that, she was CEO of the Volunteering Association from 1993 until October 2004...
winning the additional seat for Labor. Both Bill Stefaniak
Bill Stefaniak
William George "Bill" Stefaniak is an Australian Liberal Party politician. He was the Leader of the Opposition in the Australian Capital Territory after succeeding in a leadership challenge against former leader Brendan Smyth on 16 May 2006. He is a former Major in the Australian Army Reserve and...
and Vicki Dunne
Vicki Dunne
Vicki Ann Dunne , an Australian politician, is a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, since 2001, representing the electoral district of Ginninderra for the Liberal Party....
retained their seats for the Liberal Party.
In seven-member Molonglo
Molonglo electorate
The Molonglo electorate is one of the three electorates for the unicameral 17-member Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly. It has seven seats, and is the largest of the electorates in terms of population.-History:...
, there was no change to representation from the 2001 ACT election with both Labor and the Liberals retaining three seats, and the Greens retaining one seat. Labor Deputy Chief Minister
Deputy Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory
The Deputy Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory is the second-most senior officer in the Government of the Australian Capital Territory. The Deputy Chief Ministership has been a ministerial portfolio since its establishment in 1989...
Ted Quinlan
Ted Quinlan
Edward Andrew John "Ted" Quinlan is an Australian politician. He was an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly from 1998 to 2006, representing the district of Molonglo....
, and ministers Katy Gallagher
Katy Gallagher
Katy Gallagher , an Australian politician, is the sixth and current Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory and a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2001, representing the electorate of Molonglo for the Australian Labor Party...
and Simon Corbell
Simon Corbell
Simon Corbell is an Australian politician in the Australian Capital Territory, and is one of the seven members of the Legislative Assembly electorate of Molonglo, representing the Australian Labor Party...
all won re-election. The Liberal benches saw the re-election of one member, Jacqui Burke
Jacqui Burke
Jacqui Burke is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Molonglo for the Australian Liberal Party...
and two new members, Zed Seselja
Zed Seselja
Zed Seselja is a Liberal Party Australian politician. He has been a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 2004. He has been the territory's 12th Opposition Leader since December 2007, when he was appointed to the position following the resignation of Bill Stefaniak...
and Richard Mulcahy
Richard Mulcahy (Australian politician)
Richard John Mulcahy , a former Australian politician was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly for one term, from 2004 to 2008, representing the Liberal Patry and later as an independent....
; following the retirement of longserving member and former Speaker, Greg Cornwell
Greg Cornwell
Gregory Gane "Greg" Cornwell , former Australian politician, was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly elected to the multi-member single constituency Assembly and later elected to represent the multi-member electorate of Molonglo for the Liberal...
. Helen Cross
Helen Cross (politician)
Helen Cross is an Australian politician and was a member of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Molonglo, initially for the Liberal Party of Australia, and then later as an Independent. Cross was elected to the ACT Legislative Assembly at the 2001...
, elected as a Liberal member at the 2001 ACT election, resigned from the Liberal Party in September 2002 to become an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
. Cross failed to get re-elected at the 2004 ACT election. The Greens sitting member, Kerrie Tucker
Kerrie Tucker
Kerrie Robyn Tucker , former Australian politician, environmental and human rights activist, was a member of the unicameral Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly representing the multi-member electorate of Molonglo for the ACT Greens between 1995 and 2001...
, resigned from the Assembly less than one month before the election. The Greens endorsed Deb Foskey
Deb Foskey
Deb Foskey is a former Australian politician with the ACT Greens. She was elected to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly in the 2004 election for the electorate of Molonglo, in which she served until her retirement in 2008.-Early life:Foskey was born in rural East Gippsland,...
, who was elected as the sole Green in the Assembly.
Overview
The ACT's electronic voting system was first used at the 2001 election and was again used at the 2004 election. The system used standard personal computers as voting terminals, with voters using a barcode to authenticate their votes. Voting terminals were linked to a server in each polling location using a secure local area network. No votes were taken or transmitted over a public network like the Internet. The electronic voting system was used in the pre-poll voting centres, which were open for three weeks before polling day, and which opened on election day as ordinary polling places. In polling places that did not have electronic voting, voters used traditional paper ballots. In electronic polling places, voters were given a choice of voting electronically or on paper.Electronic counting, which combines the counting of electronic votes and paper ballots, was first used in the ACT at the 2001 election and was again used in the 2004 election. In 2001 and 2004, preferences shown on paper ballots were data-entered by two independent operators, electronically checked for errors, and manually corrected if required. This data was then combined with the results of the electronic voting, and the computer program distributed preferences under the ACT's Hare-Clark electoral system. The software for the electronic voting and counting system was built using Linux open source software, which was chosen specifically for the electoral system to ensure that election software is open and transparent and could be made available to scrutineers, candidates and other participants in the electoral process.
2004 statistics
In 2004, a total of 28,169 electronic votes were recorded at four pre-poll voting centres and at eight polling places on polling day. This number of electronic votes represented a 70 per cent increase on the 16,559 electronic votes cast at the 2001 election. The proportion of electronic votes in relation to all votes counted increased from 8.3 per cent in 2001 to 13.4 per cent in 2004. At each electronic polling place the number of voting machines was increased from ten in 2001 to at least fifteen in 2004 to ensure that those that wished to use computers to vote could do so with minimal queues. The ACT Electoral Commission claims that interim results for 20,722 votes using the electronic voting system were available through the Commission's website by ten minutes after the close of polls on polling night. Later in the night, a further 7,447 electronic votes cast were made available. Before 10:00pm, interim preference results from all formal electronic votes cast were available, representing 13.6 per cent of all formal votes. Based on these, and other results, the Commission claims that commentators were able to accurately predict the election outcome. Of the seventeen candidates indicated as elected on election night using the 27,849 formal electronic votes, sixteen were ultimately elected. Only one candidate indicated as elected on election night was not ultimately successful – Labor candidate Andrew BarrAndrew Barr
Andrew Barr is an Australian politician and Deputy Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory. He has been an Australian Labor Party member for the seat of Molonglo in the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly since 5 April 2006, after being elected on a countback to replace...
was the last candidate indicated as elected in Molonglo on election night. After the full distribution of all preferences, the last position in Molonglo was taken by Liberal candidate Zed Seselja.
See also
- Members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, 2004-2008Members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, 2004-2008This is a list of members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, as elected at the 16 October 2004 election.This is a list of members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, as elected at the 16 October 2004 election.This is a list of members of the Australian...
- Second Stanhope MinistrySecond Stanhope MinistryThe Second Stanhope Ministry was the ninth ministry of the Government of the Australian Capital Territory, and was led by Labor Chief Minister Jon Stanhope and his deputies Ted Quinlan and Katy Gallagher . It was sworn in on 4 November 2004, following the Labor government's landslide re-election...