South Australian state election, 1977
Encyclopedia
State elections were held in South Australia
on 17 September 1977. All 47 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly
were up for election. The incumbent Australian Labor Party
led by Premier
of South Australia Don Dunstan
defeated the Liberal Party of Australia
led by Leader of the Opposition
David Tonkin
.
were held in South Australia
in 1977, which saw Don Dunstan
and the Australian Labor Party
win a fourth successive term, against the Liberal Party of Australia
opposition led by David Tonkin
. This would be Dunstan's last election before collapsing in parliament and resigning due to ill health.
The Australian Democrats
ran for the first time under a joint New LM-Australian Democrats ticket, winning 12.3% of the vote in the 12 electorates they contested, with former LCL MP Robin Millhouse
retaining his seat of Mitcham
, which he would hold until 1982.
Legislative Council
No upper house vote took place at this election.
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
on 17 September 1977. All 47 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly
South Australian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide.- Overview :...
were up for election. The incumbent 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 Premier
Premiers of South Australia
Before the 1890s when there was no formal party system in South Australia, MPs tended to have historical liberal or conservative beliefs. The liberals dominated government from 1893 to 1905 with Labor support, with the conservatives mostly in opposition. Labor took government with the support of...
of South Australia Don Dunstan
Don Dunstan
Donald Allan "Don" Dunstan, AC, QC was a South Australian politician. He entered politics as the Member for Norwood in 1953, became state Labor leader in 1967, and was Premier of South Australia between June 1967 and April 1968, and again between June 1970 and February 1979.The son of a business...
defeated the 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 Leader of the Opposition
Leader of the Opposition (South Australia)
The Leader of the Opposition in South Australia is the leader of the largest minority political party or coalition of parties, known as the Opposition, in the House of Assembly of the Parliament of South Australia. By convention, he or she is generally a member of the House of Assembly...
David Tonkin
David Tonkin
Dr David Oliver Tonkin AO was the 38th Premier of South Australia, serving from 18 September 1979 to 10 November 1982. He was elected to the House of Assembly seat of Bragg at the 1970 election, serving until 1983. He became the leader of the South Australian division of the Liberal Party of...
.
| 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... |
383,831 | 51.64 | +5.31 | 27 | +4 | |
| 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... |
306,356 | 41.21 | +9.68 | 17 | -3 | |
| New LM New LM The New Liberal Movement was a South Australian political party that had parliamentary representation during the mid-1970s.Formed by Robin Millhouse on 6 May 1976 following the dissolution of the Liberal Movement, the New LM sought to be the true liberal party in South Australia, arguing that 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... |
25,855 | 3.48 | * | 1 | -1 | |
| Nationals SA | 11,855 | 1.59 | -1.18 | 1 | 0 | |
| Unendorsed 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... |
10,793 | 1.45 | * | 1 | +1 | |
| 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... |
2,914 | 0.39 | -0.51 | 0 | -1 | |
| Other | 1,730 | 0.23 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 743,334 | 47 | ||||
| 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... |
WIN | 53.40 | +4.20 | 27 | +3 | |
| 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... |
46.80 | -4.20 | 20 | -3 |
Background
Parliamentary elections for the lower house of the Parliament of South AustraliaParliament of South Australia
The Parliament of South Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of South Australia. It consists of the Legislative Council and the House of Assembly. It follows a Westminster system of parliamentary government....
were held in South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
in 1977, which saw Don Dunstan
Don Dunstan
Donald Allan "Don" Dunstan, AC, QC was a South Australian politician. He entered politics as the Member for Norwood in 1953, became state Labor leader in 1967, and was Premier of South Australia between June 1967 and April 1968, and again between June 1970 and February 1979.The son of a business...
and 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...
win a fourth successive term, against the 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...
opposition led by David Tonkin
David Tonkin
Dr David Oliver Tonkin AO was the 38th Premier of South Australia, serving from 18 September 1979 to 10 November 1982. He was elected to the House of Assembly seat of Bragg at the 1970 election, serving until 1983. He became the leader of the South Australian division of the Liberal Party of...
. This would be Dunstan's last election before collapsing in parliament and resigning due to ill health.
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...
ran for the first time under a joint New LM-Australian Democrats ticket, winning 12.3% of the vote in the 12 electorates they contested, with former LCL MP Robin Millhouse
Robin Millhouse
Robin Rhodes Millhouse QC has been, at various times, the South Australian Attorney-General, the first Australian Democrats parliamentarian, and the Chief Justice of both Kiribati and Nauru....
retaining his seat of Mitcham
Electoral district of Waite
Waite is an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia. Named after Peter Waite, a 19th entrepreneur and philanthropist in the current area of the electorate, it is a 30.6km² urban electorate in Adelaide's inner south-eastern suburbs, taking in the...
, which he would hold until 1982.
Legislative CouncilSouth Australian Legislative CouncilThe Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the House of Assembly...
Results
No upper house vote took place at this election.
| 1975-1979 Legislative Council South Australian Legislative Council The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the House of Assembly... (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... ) |
||
| Party | Seats | |
| 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... |
10 | |
| 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... |
9 | |
| New LM New LM The New Liberal Movement was a South Australian political party that had parliamentary representation during the mid-1970s.Formed by Robin Millhouse on 6 May 1976 following the dissolution of the Liberal Movement, the New LM sought to be the true liberal party in South Australia, arguing that 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... |
2 | |
See also
- Members of the South Australian House of Assembly, 1977-1979Members of the South Australian House of Assembly, 1977-1979This is a list of members of the South Australian House of Assembly from 1977 to 1979, as elected at the 1977 state election:...
- Members of the South Australian Legislative Council, 1975-1979