Gus Kelly (politician)
Encyclopedia
Christopher Augustus "Gus" Kelly (21 August 1890 – 25 March 1967) was an Australia
n politician
. He was an Australian Labor Party
member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
from 1925 to 1932 and again from 1935 until his death in 1967, representing the electorate of Bathurst. He held numerous ministerial positions between 1941 and 1965 in McKell
Labor Government.
and was the son of John Kelly, labourer, and Margaret Kearney. His father died when Kelly was aged and his family moved to Wellington
, where he was educated to elementary level at the Wellington convent by Catholic nuns.
He initially worked as a labourer with the New South Wales Government Railways
and then later at the Portland, New South Wales
limestone quarry. Following an accident, he became a cement tester. In 1906, Kelly joined the Australian Labor Party and held office as Portland branch secretary for 18 years and the local union organiser for the Clerk's Division of the Australian Workers Union. Kelly had active military service in the First Australian Imperial Force
in Egypt and France between 1915 and 1919.
and was endorsed as one of three Labor candidates to contest the multi-member electorate of Bathurst at the 1922 State election. Kelly was unsuccessful at this election; successfully sought endorsement (again against Chifley), and succeeded at the 1925 State election
winning the third position, defeating Nationalist
sitting member, Charles Rosenthal
.
Following a state-wide electoral redistribution, Kelly retained the seat of Bathurst when New South Wales reverted to single member electorates at the 1927 state election
. Kelly was re-elected at the 1930 state election
with over 60% of the vote, but was defeated on preferences in the 1932 State election
landslide that ended the premiership of Jack Lang
. After three years working as the gatekeeper at the Sydney Cricket Ground
(where William McKell
sat on the Board of Trustees), Kelly regained the seat in the 1935 state election
on preferences from the Australian Labor Party
candidate whilst standing as a candidate for Australian Labor Party (NSW)
. Kelly retained the seat at the 1938
, was unopposed in 1941
, challenged in 1944
, 1947
, and 1950
state elections, again unopposed in 1953
, and challenged in 1956
, 1959
, 1962
, and 1965
state elections; winning each time.
He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (NSW)
while that party was separated from the Federal executive of the Australian Labor Party
between 1931 and 1936.
In the William McKell
Labor Government that came to power at the 1941 state election
, Kelly was appointed to the following portfolios during his parliamentary career spanning 38 years; 24 of which were as a Minister:
During Kelly's service as a politician, it was alleged that the McKell Labor Government was involved in a large corrupt sly-grog operation, with one allegation centred on Kelly - that was unproven. In an interview in 1997, McKell said,
Kelly died in 1967, as the sitting member for Bathurst. A portrait of Kelly by Australian artist Reg Campbell
can be found in the permanent collection of Bathurst Regional Art Gallery.
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
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. He was an 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...
member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
New South Wales Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The other chamber is the Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney...
from 1925 to 1932 and again from 1935 until his death in 1967, representing the electorate of Bathurst. He held numerous ministerial positions between 1941 and 1965 in McKell
William McKell
Sir William John McKell GCMG , Australian politician, was Premier of New South Wales from 1941 to 1947, and was the 12th Governor-General of Australia. He was also the oldest Governor General of Australia, at 93 when he died....
Labor Government.
Early life
Kelly was born near Dubbo, New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
and was the son of John Kelly, labourer, and Margaret Kearney. His father died when Kelly was aged and his family moved to Wellington
Wellington, New South Wales
Wellington is a town in inland New South Wales, Australia located at the junction of the Macquarie and Bell Rivers. The town is the administrative centre of the Wellington Shire Local Government Area. The town is 362 kilometres from Sydney on the Great Western Highway and Mitchell Highway...
, where he was educated to elementary level at the Wellington convent by Catholic nuns.
He initially worked as a labourer with the New South Wales Government Railways
New South Wales Government Railways
The New South Wales Government Railways was the government department that operated the New South Wales Government's railways until the establishment of the Public Transport Commission in 1972. Although later known officially as the Department of Railways, New South Wales, it was still generally...
and then later at the Portland, New South Wales
Portland, New South Wales
Portland is a town in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia. At the 2006 census, Portland had a population of 1,881 people. The town was named after Australia's first cement works.-Location:...
limestone quarry. Following an accident, he became a cement tester. In 1906, Kelly joined the Australian Labor Party and held office as Portland branch secretary for 18 years and the local union organiser for the Clerk's Division of the Australian Workers Union. Kelly had active military service in the First Australian Imperial Force
First Australian Imperial Force
The First Australian Imperial Force was the main expeditionary force of the Australian Army during World War I. It was formed from 15 August 1914, following Britain's declaration of war on Germany. Generally known at the time as the AIF, it is today referred to as the 1st AIF to distinguish from...
in Egypt and France between 1915 and 1919.
Political career
In a pre-selection held in 1919, Kelly defeated Ben ChifleyBen Chifley
Joseph Benedict Chifley , Australian politician, was the 16th Prime Minister of Australia. He took over the Australian Labor Party leadership and Prime Ministership after the death of John Curtin in 1945, and went on to retain government at the 1946 election, before being defeated at the 1949...
and was endorsed as one of three Labor candidates to contest the multi-member electorate of Bathurst at the 1922 State election. Kelly was unsuccessful at this election; successfully sought endorsement (again against Chifley), and succeeded at the 1925 State election
New South Wales state election, 1925
The 1925 New South Wales state election was held on 30 May 1925. This election was for all of the 90 seats in the 27th New South Wales Legislative Assembly and it was conducted in multiple member constituencies with compulsory preferential single transferable vote usit the Hare Clark system)...
winning the third position, defeating 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...
sitting member, Charles Rosenthal
Charles Rosenthal
Major General Sir Charles Rosenthal KCB, CMG, DSO, VD was an Australian Major General of World War I, and later a politician elected as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.- Early life :...
.
Following a state-wide electoral redistribution, Kelly retained the seat of Bathurst when New South Wales reverted to single member electorates at the 1927 state election
New South Wales state election, 1927
The 1927 New South Wales state election to elect the 90 members of the 28th Legislative Assembly was held on 8 October 1927. During the previous parliament the voting system, which had been a form of proportional representation with multi-member seats and a single transferable vote , was changed...
. Kelly was re-elected at the 1930 state election
New South Wales state election, 1930
The 1930 New South Wales state election was held on 25 October 1930. The election was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting...
with over 60% of the vote, but was defeated on preferences in the 1932 State election
New South Wales state election, 1932
The 1932 New South Wales state election was held on 11 June 1932. This election was for all of the 90 seats in the 30th New South Wales Legislative Assembly and it was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting...
landslide that ended the premiership of Jack Lang
Jack Lang (Australian politician)
John Thomas Lang , usually referred to as J.T. Lang during his career, and familiarly known as "Jack" and nicknamed "The Big Fella" was an Australian politician who was Premier of New South Wales for two terms...
. After three years working as the gatekeeper at the Sydney Cricket Ground
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
(where William McKell
William McKell
Sir William John McKell GCMG , Australian politician, was Premier of New South Wales from 1941 to 1947, and was the 12th Governor-General of Australia. He was also the oldest Governor General of Australia, at 93 when he died....
sat on the Board of Trustees), Kelly regained the seat in the 1935 state election
New South Wales state election, 1935
The 1935 New South Wales state election was held on 11 May 1935. This election was for all of the 90 seats in the 31st New South Wales Legislative Assembly and was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting....
on preferences from 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...
candidate whilst standing as a candidate for Australian Labor Party (NSW)
Australian Labor Party (NSW)
The Australian Labor Party , commonly known as Lang Labor, was the name given to a major breakaway of the Australian Labor Party in New South Wales that operated from 1931 to 1936....
. Kelly retained the seat at the 1938
New South Wales state election, 1938
The 1938 New South Wales state election was held on 26 March 1938. This election was for all of the 90 seats in the 32nd New South Wales Legislative Assembly and was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting....
, was unopposed in 1941
New South Wales state election, 1941
The 1941 New South Wales state election was held on 10 May 1941. This election was for all of the 90 seats in the 33nd New South Wales Legislative Assembly and was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting....
, challenged in 1944
New South Wales state election, 1944
The 1944 New South Wales state election was held on 27 May 1944. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1940 redistribution...
, 1947
New South Wales state election, 1947
The 1947 New South Wales state election was held on 3 May 1947. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1940 redistribution...
, and 1950
New South Wales state election, 1950
The 1950 New South Wales State state election was held on 17 June 1950. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1949 redistribution...
state elections, again unopposed in 1953
New South Wales state election, 1953
The 1953 New South Wales state election was held on 14 February 1953. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1952 redistribution...
, and challenged in 1956
New South Wales state election, 1956
The 1956 New South Wales state election was held on 3 March 1956. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1952 redistribution...
, 1959
New South Wales state election, 1959
The 1959 New South Wales state election was held on 21 March 1959. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1957 redistribution...
, 1962
New South Wales state election, 1962
The 1962 New South Wales state election was held on 3 March 1962. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1961 redistribution...
, and 1965
New South Wales state election, 1965
The 1965 New South Wales state election was held on 1 May 1965. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1961 redistribution...
state elections; winning each time.
He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (NSW)
Australian Labor Party (NSW)
The Australian Labor Party , commonly known as Lang Labor, was the name given to a major breakaway of the Australian Labor Party in New South Wales that operated from 1931 to 1936....
while that party was separated from the Federal executive of 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...
between 1931 and 1936.
In the William McKell
William McKell
Sir William John McKell GCMG , Australian politician, was Premier of New South Wales from 1941 to 1947, and was the 12th Governor-General of Australia. He was also the oldest Governor General of Australia, at 93 when he died....
Labor Government that came to power at the 1941 state election
New South Wales state election, 1941
The 1941 New South Wales state election was held on 10 May 1941. This election was for all of the 90 seats in the 33nd New South Wales Legislative Assembly and was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting....
, Kelly was appointed to the following portfolios during his parliamentary career spanning 38 years; 24 of which were as a Minister:
- Minister for Health (1941 to 1950 and again, during 1960)
- Minister for Housing (1950 to 1952 and again, during 1954)
- Colonial Secretary (1952 to 1959)
- Minister for Immigration (1953–1959)
- Minister for Co-operative Societies (1954 to 1959)
- Chief Secretary and Minister for Tourist Activities (1959 to 1965)
During Kelly's service as a politician, it was alleged that the McKell Labor Government was involved in a large corrupt sly-grog operation, with one allegation centred on Kelly - that was unproven. In an interview in 1997, McKell said,
- "Kelly became an absolute load on the party... we won't say any more than that..."
Kelly died in 1967, as the sitting member for Bathurst. A portrait of Kelly by Australian artist Reg Campbell
Reg Campbell
Reginald "Reg" Earl Campbell was an Australian portrait painter and self-taught artist. He was a winner of the Archibald Prize, being awarded the 1990 People's Choice Award for his self-portrait.-Early years:...
can be found in the permanent collection of Bathurst Regional Art Gallery.