1953 South Australian state election

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1953 South Australian state election
Flag of South Australia.svg
  1950 7 March 1953 (1953-03-07) 1956  

All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly
20 seats were needed for a majority
 First partySecond party
  ThomasPlayford1963crop.jpg Senator Mick O'Halloran.jpg
Leader Thomas Playford Mick O'Halloran
Party Liberal and Country League Labor
Leader since5 November 193810 October 1949
Leader's seat Gumeracha Frome
Last election23 seats12 seats
Seats won21 seats14 seats
Seat changeDecrease2.svg2Increase2.svg2
Percentage47.0%53.0%
SwingDecrease2.svg4.3Increase2.svg4.3

Premier before election

Thomas Playford
Liberal and Country League

Elected Premier

Thomas Playford
Liberal and Country League

State elections were held in South Australia on 7 March 1953. All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Country League led by Premier of South Australia Thomas Playford IV defeated the Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the Opposition Mick O'Halloran. [1] [2]

Contents

Background

Labor won three seats, metropolitan Norwood and Prospect and rural Victoria from the LCL. [3] The LCL won one seat, rural Murray from Labor. [4] Neither major party contested the independent-held seat of Ridley. [1] [2]

The Labor opposition won 53 percent of the statewide two-party vote, but the LCL retained government with the assistance of the Playmander − an electoral malapportionment that also saw a clear majority of the statewide two-party vote won by Labor while failing to form government in 1944, 1962 and 1968. [1] [2]

Results

South Australian state election, 7 March 1953 [5]
House of Assembly
<< 19501956 >>

Enrolled voters354,273
Votes cast336,592 Turnout 95.01%+1.86%
Informal votes9,871Informal2.93%–0.40%
Summary of votes by party
PartyPrimary votes %SwingSeatsChange
  Labor 166,51750.97%+2.88%14+ 2
  Liberal and Country 119,10636.45%–4.05%21– 2
  Communist 4,8271.48%+0.14%0± 0
  Independent 36,27111.10%+1.03%4± 0
Total326,721  39 
Two-party-preferred
  Liberal and Country 47.00%–4.30%
  Labor 53.00%+4.30%

Post-election pendulum

LCL seats (21)
Marginal
Unley Colin Dunnage LCL0.3%
Murray Hector White LCL0.5%
Glenelg Baden Pattinson LCL0.7%
Torrens John Travers LCL1.3%
Fairly safe
Gouger Rufus Goldney LCL6.1%
Onkaparinga Howard Shannon LCL7.0%
Flinders Glen Pearson LCL8.4%
Burra George Hawker LCL9.4%
Light Herbert Michael LCL9.5%
Safe
Newcastle George Jenkins LCL13.7%
Burnside Geoffrey Clarke LCL16.1%
Eyre Arthur Christian LCL17.8% v IND
Angas Berthold Teusner LCL18.1% v IND
Gumeracha Thomas Playford LCL40.4% v COM
Albert Malcolm McIntosh LCLundistributed
Stirling William Jenkins LCLundistributed
Alexandra David Brookman LCLunopposed
Mitcham Henry Dunks LCLunopposed
Rocky River James Heaslip LCLunopposed
Yorke Peninsula Cecil Hincks LCLunopposed
Young Robert Nicholls LCLunopposed
Labor seats (15)
Marginal
Victoria Jim Corcoran ALP0.8%
Prospect Joe Jennings ALP3.4%
Fairly safe
Norwood Don Dunstan ALP6.3%
Safe
Stanley Percy Quirke ALP11.9%
Goodwood Frank Walsh ALP13.1%
Gawler John Clark ALP27.1% v IND
Semaphore Harold Tapping ALP37.6% v IND
Adelaide Sam Lawn ALP39.5% v COM
Stuart Lindsay Riches ALP39.8% v COM
Port Adelaide James Stephens ALP41.9% v COM
Port Pirie Charles Davis ALPundistributed
Frome Mick O'Halloran ALPunopposed
Hindmarsh Cyril Hutchens ALPunopposed
Thebarton Fred Walsh ALPunopposed
Wallaroo Hughie McAlees ALPunopposed
Crossbench seats (3)
Mount Gambier John Fletcher IND4.3% v ALP
Chaffey William MacGillivray IND19.1% v LCL
Ridley Tom Stott IND27.8% v IND

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 Jaensch, Dean (March 2007). "The 1953 General Election - Formed the 34th Parliament". History of South Australian elections 1857-2006: House of Assembly, Volume 1. State Electoral Office South Australia. pp. 270–273. ISBN   9780975048634. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 27 July 2015 via Electoral Commission of South Australia.
  2. 1 2 3 Tilby Stock, Jenny (1996). "The 'Playmander', Its origins, operation and effect on South Australia". In O'Neil, Bernard; Raftery, Judith; Round, Kerrie (eds.). Playford's South Australia: essays on the history of South Australia, 1933-1968. Association of Professional Historians. pp. 73–90. ISBN   9780646290928 via Professional Historians Association (South Australia).
  3. "Fate of Govern. in Doubt in Swing to Labor: LCL Appears Certain to Lose at least Three Seats". The Mail . 7 March 1953. Retrieved 13 January 2016 via Trove.
  4. "Absolute Majority for Government: L.C.L. Candidate Wins Murray Seat". The Advertiser . 14 March 1953. Retrieved 13 January 2016 via Trove.
  5. "Summary of 1953 Election". University of Western Australia. Retrieved 7 July 2015.

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