Edwin Thomas John Kerby (12 April 1885 – 5 July 1971) was an Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n politician. Born in Ballarat, Victoria

Ballarat, Victoria

Ballarat is a city in the state of Victoria, Australia, approximately west-north-west of the state capital Melbourne situated on the lower plains of the Great Dividing Range and the Yarrowee River catchment. It is the largest inland centre and third most populous city in the state and the fifth...

, he attended Granville College before becoming a mining engineer and electrical contractor. He served in World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 from 1914 to 1919. In 1919, he was selected as the Nationalist

Nationalist Party of Australia

The Nationalist Party of Australia was an Australian political party. It was formed on 17 February 1917 from a merger between the conservative Commonwealth Liberal Party and the National Labor Party, the name given to the pro-conscription defectors from the Australian Labor Party led by Prime...

 candidate for 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....

 seat of Ballaarat

Division of Ballarat

The Division of Ballarat is an Australian Electoral Division in Victoria. The division was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election. It is named for the provincial city of Ballarat....

, and defeated sitting 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...

 MP Charles McGrath

Charles McGrath

David Charles McGrath was an Australian politician. Originally a member of the Australian Labor Party, he joined Joseph Lyons in the split that led to the formation of the United Australia Party.-Early life:...

 by one vote, the closest result ever recorded for the House of Representatives. McGrath successfully challenged Kerby's election in the courts, and a by-election was held in 1920 and won by McGrath. Kerby became a businessman, focusing mainly on aviation

Aviation

Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...

, and became prominent among ex-service

Ex-service

Ex-service is a British term which refers to those who have served in the British Empire or Commonwealth Armed Forces. Earlier, the term ex-servicemen or Ex-servicewomen was used, but has been replaced with one having no gender connotations....

men's causes; he held the leadership of the RSL

Returned and Services League of Australia

The Returned and Services League of Australia is a support organisation for men and women who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force ....

. He died in 1971.