Australian federal election, 1961 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Federal elections were held in Australia on 9 December 1961. All 122 seats in the 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....

, and 31 of the 60 seats in the 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,...

were up for election. The incumbent 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 Prime Minister of Australia

Prime Minister of Australia

The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...

Robert Menzies

Sir Robert Gordon Menzies, , Australian politician, was the 12th and longest-serving Prime Minister of Australia....

with coalition

Coalition (Australia)

The Coalition in Australian politics refers to a group of centre-right parties that has existed in the form of a coalition agreement since 1922...

partner the Country Party led by John McEwen

John McEwen

Sir John "Black Jack" McEwen, GCMG, CH , was an Australian politician and the 18th Prime Minister of Australia...

defeated the 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 Arthur Calwell

Arthur Calwell

Arthur Augustus Calwell Australian politician, was a member of the Australian House of Representatives for 32 years from 1940 to 1972, Immigration Minister in the government of Ben Chifley from 1945 to 1949 and Leader of the Australian Labor Party from 1960 to 1967.-Early life:Calwell was born in...

House of Reps (IRV
Instant-runoff voting
Instant-runoff voting , also known as preferential voting, the alternative vote and ranked choice voting, is a voting system used to elect one winner. Voters rank candidates in order of preference, and their ballots are counted as one vote for their first choice candidate. If a candidate secures a...

) — 1961–63—Turnout 95.27% (CV
Compulsory voting
Compulsory voting is a system in which electors are obliged to vote in elections or attend a polling place on voting day. If an eligible voter does not attend a polling place, he or she may be subject to punitive measures such as fines, community service, or perhaps imprisonment if fines are unpaid...

) — Informal 2.57%
Party	Votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
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...	2,512,929	47.90	+5.09	60	+15
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...	1,761,738	33.58	−3.65	45	−13
Democratic Labor Party Democratic Labor Party (historical) The Democratic Labor Party was an Australian political party that existed from 1955 until 1978.-History:The DLP was formed as a result of a split in the Australian Labor Party that began in 1954. The split was between the party's national leadership, under the then party leader Dr H.V...	456,962	8.71	−0.70	0	0
Country Party	446,475	8.51	−0.81	17	−2
Other	67,929	1.29		0	0
Total	5,246,033			122
Liberal/Country coalition Coalition (Australia) The Coalition in Australian politics refers to a group of centre-right parties that has existed in the form of a coalition agreement since 1922...	WIN	49.50	−4.60	62	−15
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...		50.50	+4.60	60	+15

Senate (STV
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...

) — 1961–64—Turnout 95.27% (CV
Compulsory voting
Compulsory voting is a system in which electors are obliged to vote in elections or attend a polling place on voting day. If an eligible voter does not attend a polling place, he or she may be subject to punitive measures such as fines, community service, or perhaps imprisonment if fines are unpaid...

) — Informal 10.62%
Party	Votes	%	Swing	Seats Won	Seats Held
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...	2,151,339	44.71	+1.93	14	28
Liberal/Country (Joint Ticket)	1,595,696	33.16	+9.79	8	*
Democratic Labor Party Democratic Labor Party (historical) The Democratic Labor Party was an Australian political party that existed from 1955 until 1978.-History:The DLP was formed as a result of a split in the Australian Labor Party that began in 1954. The split was between the party's national leadership, under the then party leader Dr H.V...	472,578	9.82	+1.40	0	1
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...	398,292	8.28	−12.41	7	24
Communist Party of Australia Communist Party of Australia The Communist Party of Australia was founded in 1920 and dissolved in 1991; it was succeeded by the Socialist Party of Australia, which then renamed itself, becoming the current Communist Party of Australia. The CPA achieved its greatest political strength in the 1940s and faced an attempted...	78,188	1.62	−1.29	0	0
Country Party	31,090	0.65	−0.50	1	6
Independents 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...	46,499	0.97	+0.54	1	1
Other	38,581	0.80		0	0
Total	4,812,263			31	60

Independent: Reg Turnbull

Seats changing hands

Seat	Pre-1961				Swing	Post-1961
Seat	Party		Member	Margin	Swing	Margin	Member	Party
Bowman, Qld Division of Bowman The Division of Bowman is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. The division was created in 1949 and is named for David Bowman, an early leader of the Australian Labor Party, in Queensland...		Liberal	Malcolm McColm Malcolm McColm Malcolm Llewellyn McColm was an Australian politician. Born in Cardiff, Wales, he migrated to Australia as a child and was educated at Scotch College, Warwick, Queensland...	6.1	8.0	1.9	Jack Comber Jack Comber Jack Comber was an Australian politician. Born in Broken Hill, New South Wales, he was educated at St Kevin's College in Melbourne before becoming a shop assistant. He served in the military 1941-46 and returned to become a store manager and insurance consultant...	Labor
Canning, WA Division of Canning The Division of Canning is an Australian Electoral Division in Western Australia. The division was created in 1949 and is named for Alfred Canning, the Western Australian government surveyor who surveyed the Canning Stock Route...		Country	Leonard Hamilton Leonard Hamilton Leonard Hamilton is the current head basketball coach at Florida State University. He is a former coach at Oklahoma State University, the University of Miami, and the NBA's Washington Wizards...	N/A	65.7	15.7	Neil McNeill Neil McNeill Neil McNeill was an Australian politician. Born in Yarloop, Western Australia, he was educated at Scotch College, Perth, and the University of Western Australia, after which he became a farmer. He served in the military in 1945, and returned to become a district officer with the Western Australian...	Liberal
Capricornia, Qld Division of Capricornia The Division of Capricornia is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. The division was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election. It is named for the Tropic of Capricorn, which runs through the Division. It is located on the central Queensland coast and its...		Liberal	Henry Pearce Henry Pearce (Australian politician) Henry George Pearce was an Australian politician. Born in Rockhampton, Queensland, he attended state schools before becoming a retail manager, and then a full time secretary with the Central Queensland Red Cross. In 1949, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Liberal...	7.7	10.7	5.0	George Gray George Gray (Australian politician) -Early life:Gray claimed to have been born at Hay, New South Wales on 2 October 1903 to bank manager George Henry Gray and his wife Priscilla Maud Kerr. He grew up near Orange and was educated at Burwood Public School in Sydney, then becoming a grocer's assistant at Thornleigh...	Labor
Cowper, NSW Division of Cowper The Division of Cowper is an Australian Electoral Division in New South Wales. The division was created in 1900 and was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election and is named for Charles Cowper, an early Premier of New South Wales...		Country	Earle Page Earle Page Sir Earle Christmas Grafton Page, GCMG, CH was the 11th Prime Minister of Australia, and is to date the second-longest serving federal parliamentarian in Australian history, with 41 years, 361 days in Parliament.-Early life:...	11.1	12.9	1.8	Frank McGuren Frank McGuren Francis William "Frank" McGuren, OAM was an Australian politician. Born in Grafton, New South Wales, he was educated at St Augustine's School in Coffs Harbour...	Labor
Evans, NSW Division of Evans The Division of Evans was anAustralian Electoral Division in New South Wales.The division was created in 1949 and abolished in 1977. It was named for George Evans, an early explorer. It was located in the inner western suburbs of Sydney, including Ashfield, Croydon and Drummoyne...		Liberal	Frederick Osborne Frederick Osborne Frederick Meares Osborne CMG DSC and Bar VRD was an Australian politician and government minister.Osborne was born in Orange, New South Wales, and educated at North Sydney High School and Sydney Church of England Grammar School. He graduated with a degree in law from the University of Sydney...	7.0	7.1	0.1	James Monaghan James Monaghan James Edward Monaghan was an Australian politician. Born in Sydney, he attended Catholic schools and then the University of Sydney. He was a public servant and barrister before entering politics. In 1961, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Labor member for Evans,...	Labor
Griffith, Qld Division of Griffith The Division of Griffith is anAustralian Electoral Division in Queensland.The division was created in 1934, when the old seat of Oxley was abolished, and is named for Sir Samuel Griffith, 9th Premier of Queensland and principal author of the Australian Constitution...		Liberal	Arthur Chresby Arthur Chresby Arthur Albert Chresby was an Australian politician. Born in New South Wales, he attended state schools before becoming a journalist, then a car salesman, and finally a public relations consultant...	0.1	7.4	7.3	Wilfred Coutts Wilfred Coutts Wilfred Charles Coutts was an Australian politician. Born in Marburg, Queensland, he was educated at state schools before becoming a salesman. He was active in local politics as a member of Brisbane City Council. In 1954, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Labor...	Labor
Herbert, Qld Division of Herbert The Division of Herbert is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. Eligible voters within the Division elect a single representative, known as the member for Herbert, to the Australian House of Representatives. The division was first contested at the 1901 election...		Liberal	John Murray John Murray (Queensland politician) John Murray, MBE was an Australian politician. He attended state schools before serving in the military 1939-45. He returned to become a farmer and grazier at Ingham, Queensland...	1.5	3.8	2.3	Ted Harding Ted Harding Ernest William "Ted" Harding was an Australian politician and rugby league footballer. Born in Bowen, Queensland, he was educated at Townsville Grammar School before serving in the military 1942-44...	Labor
Hume, NSW Division of Hume The Division of Hume is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of New South Wales. The Division is located in the central part of the state, just north of the Australian Capital Territory. The Division covers a predominantly rural area, with agriculture and coal mining the main industries...		Country	Charles Anderson Charles Groves Wright Anderson Charles Groves Wright Anderson VC, MC was a South African-born, Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross, a member of the Australian House of Representatives, and a farmer.-Early life:...	2.1	3.0	0.9	Arthur Fuller Arthur Fuller Arthur Nieberding Fuller was a long serving member of the Australian House of Representatives.Born in Gundagai to a goldminer and his wife, Fuller spent his childhood in the New South Wales goldfields. He later managed a clothing store in Cobar before moving to Tumut in 1919 to open a clothing...	Labor
Kalgoorlie, WA Division of Kalgoorlie The Division of Kalgoorlie was an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Western Australia, named after the city of Kalgoorlie. The Division, which was proclaimed in 1900 as one of the original 75 divisions to be contested at the first Federal election, covered most of the land area of...		Liberal	Peter Browne Peter Browne (Australian politician) Peter Grahame Browne was an Australian politician. Born in Sydney, he served the 2nd Anti-Aircraft Trg Regt in Darwin from 1939 to 1943 during the Bombing of Darwin. In 1943 he signed-up for the Empire Air Training Scheme where he received pilot training in Tiger Moth aircraft...	0.3	0.9	0.6	Fred Collard Fred Collard Frederick Walter "Fred" Collard was an Australian politician. Born in Beverley, Western Australia, he was educated at state schools before becoming a goldminer and an official with the Australian Workers' Union. He served in the military 1942-1946...	Labor
Lilley, Qld Division of Lilley The Division of Lilley is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. The division was first proclaimed in 1913. The division is named after Sir Charles Lilley, a former Premier of Queensland and a former Chief Justice in the Supreme Court of Queensland....		Liberal	Bruce Wight Bruce Wight Bruce McDonald Wight was an Australian politician. Born in Mudgee, New South Wales, he was educated at Sydney High School before becoming a business manager in Brisbane, having moved to Queensland. He served in the military 1937-1946...	11.9	13.2	1.3	Donald James Cameron Donald James Cameron Donald James Cameron , Australian politician, was born in Cloncurry, Queensland, and was educated at Catholic schools. He moved to Brisbane where he worked as a chef and catering manager. Active in the Australian Labor Party from an early age, he unexpectedly won the middle-class seat of Lilley at...	Labor
Mitchell, NSW Division of Mitchell The Division of Mitchell is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of New South Wales. It is located in the north-west suburbs of Sydney, and includes the entire suburbs of Baulkham Hills, Beaumont Hills, Bella Vista, Box Hill, Kellyville, Nelson and Winston Hills...		Liberal	Roy Wheeler	8.0	11.4	3.4	John Armitage John Armitage John Lindsay Armitage, OAM was an Australian politician. Born in Sydney, he was educated at Sydney Technical High School before undergoing military service from 1942 to 1945...	Labor
Moore, WA Division of Moore The Division of Moore is an Australian electoral division in the state of Western Australia. Eligible voters within the Division elect a single representative, known as the member for Moore, to the Australian House of Representatives...		Liberal	Hugh Halbert Hugh Halbert Hugh Victor Halbert was an Australian politician. Born in Meckering, Western Australia, he was educated at Hale School in Perth before becoming an accountant, tax agent and retail businessman. In 1958, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Liberal member for Moore,...	2.9	4.2	1.3	Hugh Leslie Hugh Leslie Hugh Alan Leslie OBE was a Western Australian Country Party politician and newspaper editor.- Early life :...	Country
Oxley, Qld Division of Oxley The Division of Oxley is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. The current division is the second to bear the name, and was created in 1949. The division is named after the Australian explorer, John Oxley...		Liberal	Donald Alastair Cameron Donald Alastair Cameron Donald Alastair Cameron OBE was an Australian politician and Minister for Health.Cameron was born in Ipswich, Queensland, and was educated at Ipswich Grammar School and Sydney University, where he graduated in arts and medicine. From 1927 to 1933 he was a medical officer at the Royal Prince Alfred...	5.9	9.4	3.5	Bill Hayden Bill Hayden William George "Bill" Hayden AC was the 21st Governor-General of Australia. Prior to this, he represented the Australian Labor Party in parliament; he was a minister in the government of Gough Whitlam, and later became Leader of the Opposition, narrowly losing the 1980 federal election to the...	Labor
Petrie, Qld Division of Petrie The Division of Petrie is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. The division was created in 1949 and named after Andrew Petrie , a noted civil engineer, pioneer and explorer, and the first free settler in Brisbane ....		Liberal	Alan Hulme Alan Hulme Sir Alan Shallcross Hulme KBE was an Australian politician, accountant and cattle breeder. He was born in the Sydney suburb of Mosman and moved to Queensland before World War II, where he practised as an accountant...	10.5	11.2	0.7	Reginald O'Brien Reginald O'Brien Reginald Charles O'Brien was an Australian politician. Born in Newcastle, New South Wales, he was educated at technical schools in Sydney before military service. On his return, he was a public servant, and was an official of the Clerks' Union in Queensland...	Labor
Phillip, NSW Division of Phillip The Division of Phillip was an Australian Electoral Division in the state of New South Wales. It was located in the Sydney's eastern suburbs, and was named after Captain Arthur Phillip, captain of the First Fleet and first Governor of New South Wales...		Liberal	William Aston William Aston Sir William John Aston, KCMG was an Australian politician. Born in Sydney, he attended state schools before becoming an accountant and company director. He served in World War II from 1942-44, and was involved in local politics as a member of Waverley Council...	1.9	3.3	1.4	Syd Einfeld Syd Einfeld Sydney David "Syd" Einfeld AO was an Australian politician and Jewish leader. Born in Sydney, he was educated at Fort St Boys' High School before becoming a manager of a merchandising company...	Labor
Stirling, WA Division of Stirling The Division of Stirling is an Australian Electoral Division in the inner northern and beachside suburbs of Perth, Western Australia. It includes the suburbs of Balcatta, Balga, Carine, Innaloo, Nollamara, North Beach, Scarborough, Stirling, Trigg and Yokine....		Liberal	Doug Cash	0.2	0.5	0.3	Harry Webb Harry Webb (Australian politician) Charles Harry Webb was an Australian politician. Born in England, he migrated to Australia in 1913 and was educated at state schools, after which he became a locomotive engineman...	Labor
Wide Bay, Qld Division of Wide Bay The Division of Wide Bay is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. The division was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election...		Country	Henry Bandidt Henry Bandidt Henry Norman Charles Bandidt, MBE was an Australian politician. Born near Galton, Queensland, he was educated at Ipswich Grammar School and the University of Queensland before becoming a solicitor in 1931. He was a dairy farmer, writer and lecturer, as well as an official with the Queensland...	4.3	9.5	5.2	Brendan Hansen	Labor

Members in italics did not contest their seat at this election.

Issues

Due to a credit squeeze, the economy had gone into a brief recession in 1961. This combined with initial enthusiasm for the new Opposition Leader, Arthur Calwell, was enough to see a swing against the Menzies Government.

Significance

For a long time, the 1961 election remained the closest Federal election in Australian history, with the Government holding a majority of only a single seat. The election was decided in the seat of Moreton

Division of Moreton

The Division of Moreton is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. The division was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election. It is named after Moreton Bay. The electorate is a bellwether in elections, having voted for the party winning government at every...

, which was won for the Liberals by Jim Killen

James Killen

Sir Denis James "Jim" Killen, AC, KCMG , was an Australian politician.-Education and early career:Killen was born in Dalby, Queensland and educated at Brisbane Grammar School and the University of Queensland, where he graduated in law...

by only 130 votes, as the result of receiving 93 vital communist party preferences. The record for the closest election in Australia's history was eventually beaten by the 2010 election, which was a 72-72 seat draw.

One fact which is rarely noted about the 1961 result is that even with Killen’s win in Moreton, Labor actually won the same number of House of Representatives seats as the Coalition. Both Labor and the Coalition won 62 seats, but two of Labor’s seats were for the Northern Territory and the ACT, whose representatives at that time only had limited voting rights. Their votes could not be counted on matters such as confidence votes which determine who would be in government.

Seats changing hands

Issues

Significance

See also