Electoral district of Northcote
Encyclopedia
The Electoral district of Northcote is an electoral district of the Victorian Legislative Assembly
. It currently covers the suburbs of Alphington
, Fairfield
, Northcote
, Thornbury
, and part of Preston
. It lies on the northern bank of the Yarra River
between the Merri and Darebin creeks.
The seat has had only five members since its creation in 1927. It most famous member is former Premier John Cain
while Northcote was also the seat for former state Labor leader Frank Wilkes
.
Former ABC
newsreader Mary Delahunty
was elected in an 1998 by-election. As the electorate was safe for the Labor Party, the Liberals
declined to nominate a candidate. However, partly due to the presence of a One Nation
candidate, the Liberals took the unusual step of actively campaigning for the Australian Democrats
, issuing a 'How to Vote
Liberal' card which advocated voting Democrat, and then Premier Jeff Kennett
also wrote to voters urging them to vote Democrat.http://www.abc.net.au/vic99/electorates/data/profiles/northcote.htm
While the law has since been changed stopping party campaigning directly for other parties, the fact the seat is safe for Labor has meant Liberals have often run dead allowing other parties, like the Greens
in 2002, to become the main challengers to Labor.
Victorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of Victoria in Australia. Together with the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house, it sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Melbourne.-History:...
. It currently covers the suburbs of Alphington
Alphington, Victoria
Alphington is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 7 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Darebin and Yarra. At the 2006 Census, Alphington had a population of 4,483...
, Fairfield
Fairfield, Victoria
Fairfield is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Darebin and Yarra...
, Northcote
Northcote, Victoria
Northcote is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 7 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Darebin...
, Thornbury
Thornbury, Victoria
Thornbury originalSince the 1960s, the vast majority of Melburnians pronounce the name phonetically. The 'h' is no longer silent, and there is more stress placed upon the 'o'. pronunciation is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 7 km north from Melbourne's central business district....
, and part of Preston
Preston, Victoria
Preston is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km north from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Darebin. At the 2006 Census, Preston had a population of 27,892.-Settlement:...
. It lies on the northern bank of the Yarra River
Yarra River
The Yarra River, originally Birrarung, is a river in east-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stretches of the river is where the city of Melbourne was established in 1835 and today Greater Melbourne dominates and influences the landscape of its lower reaches...
between the Merri and Darebin creeks.
The seat has had only five members since its creation in 1927. It most famous member is former Premier John Cain
John Cain (senior)
John Cain was an Australian politician, who became the 34th premier of Victoria, and was the first Australian Labor Party leader to win a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assembly. He was the only premier of Victoria whose son also served as premier.-Early life:Cain was born, one of 18...
while Northcote was also the seat for former state Labor leader Frank Wilkes
Frank Wilkes
Frank Noel Wilkes AM , Australian politician, was Leader of the Labor Opposition in Victoria from 1977 to 1981. Wilkes was born in Melbourne and educated at Northcote Primary and Secondary Schools and Preston Technical College. During the Second World War he served in the southwest Pacific in the...
.
Former ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
newsreader Mary Delahunty
Mary Delahunty
Mary Delahunty is an Australian journalist and retired politician with the Australian Labor Party.-Early life:Delahunty was born in Victoria, Australia and educated at Loreto College, in Victoria. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Latrobe University.-Media career:Delahunty...
was elected in an 1998 by-election. As the electorate was safe for the Labor Party, the Liberals
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...
declined to nominate a candidate. However, partly due to the presence of a One Nation
One Nation Party
One Nation is a far-right and nationalist political party in Australia. It gained 22% of the vote translating to 11 of 89 seats in Queensland's unicameral legislative assembly at the 1998 state election and made major inroads into the vote of the existing parties...
candidate, the Liberals took the unusual step of actively campaigning for 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...
, issuing a 'How to Vote
Australian electoral system
The Australian electoral system has evolved over nearly 150 years of continuous democratic government, and has a number of distinctive features including compulsory voting, preferential voting and the use of proportional voting to elect the upper house, the Australian Senate.- Compulsory voting...
Liberal' card which advocated voting Democrat, and then Premier Jeff Kennett
Jeff Kennett
Jeffrey Gibb Kennett AC , a former Australian politician, was the Premier of Victoria between 1992 and 1999. He is currently the President of Hawthorn Football Club. He is the founding Chairman of beyondblue, a national depression initiative.- Early life :Kennett was born in Melbourne on 2 March...
also wrote to voters urging them to vote Democrat.http://www.abc.net.au/vic99/electorates/data/profiles/northcote.htm
While the law has since been changed stopping party campaigning directly for other parties, the fact the seat is safe for Labor has meant Liberals have often run dead allowing other parties, like the Greens
Victorian Greens
Australian Greens Victoria, also called the Victorian Greens, is a Green Party located in Victoria, a member of the federation of the Australian Greens party.- Early Years :...
in 2002, to become the main challengers to Labor.
Members for Northcote
| Member | Party | Term | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Cain John Cain (senior) John Cain was an Australian politician, who became the 34th premier of Victoria, and was the first Australian Labor Party leader to win a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assembly. He was the only premier of Victoria whose son also served as premier.-Early life:Cain was born, one of 18... |
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... |
1927–1957 | |
| Frank Wilkes Frank Wilkes Frank Noel Wilkes AM , Australian politician, was Leader of the Labor Opposition in Victoria from 1977 to 1981. Wilkes was born in Melbourne and educated at Northcote Primary and Secondary Schools and Preston Technical College. During the Second World War he served in the southwest Pacific in the... |
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... |
1957–1988 | |
| Tony Sheehan Tony Sheehan Anthony John "Tony" Sheehan is a former Australian politician. He obtained an economics degree at La Trobe University and was a school teacher at Heidleberg High School. He was elected branch secretary of the Victorian Secondary Teachers Association.He was a member of the Victorian Legislative... |
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... |
1988–1998 | |
| Mary Delahunty Mary Delahunty Mary Delahunty is an Australian journalist and retired politician with the Australian Labor Party.-Early life:Delahunty was born in Victoria, Australia and educated at Loreto College, in Victoria. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Latrobe University.-Media career:Delahunty... |
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... |
1998–2006 | |
| Fiona Richardson Fiona Richardson Fiona Richardson, Australian Labor Party politician, is the current member for the electorate of Northcote.-Personal life:... |
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... |
2006–present | |
Election results
See also
- Parliaments of the Australian states and territoriesParliaments of the Australian states and territoriesThe Parliaments of the Australian states and territories are legislative bodies within the federal framework of the Commonwealth of Australia. Before the formation of the Commonwealth in 1901, the six Australian colonies were self-governing, with parliaments which had come into existence at various...
- List of members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly