Electoral district of Vasse

Last updated

Vasse
Western AustraliaLegislative Assembly
WA Election 2021 - Vasse.png
Location of Vasse (dark green) in Western Australia
State Western Australia
Dates current1950–present
MP Libby Mettam
Party Liberal
Namesake Vasse River
Electors 31,284 (2021)
Area2,643 km2 (1,020.5 sq mi)

Vasse is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in Western Australia. Vasse is based in the South West region of the state, centred on the town of Busselton and is named for the Vasse River. It has been a safe seat for the Liberal Party at all times since its creation, including as its previous incarnation, Sussex.

Contents

The current MLA, Liberal Libby Mettam, won a by-election on 18 October 2014 following the resignation of former Liberal leader Troy Buswell.

Geography

Originally centred on Geographe Bay and Busselton, the redistribution ahead of the 2008 state election expanded the electorate south to include large parts of the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River which had formerly been in Warren-Blackwood prior to that district's abolition. Apart from Busselton and its suburbs, the Vasse district includes the towns of Vasse, Dunsborough/Quindalup, Yallingup, Margaret River, Cowaramup, Gracetown and Prevelly as well as part of Witchcliffe.

History

Vasse was first created for the 1950 state election out of the former seat of Sussex. It is a historically safe seat for the Liberal Party, which has held the seat continuously since its foundation. Indeed, counting its time as Sussex, it has been in the hands of the Liberals and their predecessors since the first Legislative Assembly was convened in 1890. The only time it has been out of the hands of a conservative party was when sitting Liberal Bernie Masters resigned to sit as an independent in 2004–05.

Vasse had only two members in its first 46 years, Stewart Bovell (1950–1971) and Barry Blaikie (1971–1996). Masters succeeded Blaikie at the 1996 state election, but lost preselection for a third term ahead of the 2005 election in favour of then Shire of Busselton mayor Troy Buswell. Masters resigned from the party and contested the election as an independent, but was defeated by Buswell. Buswell served as Liberal leader from January to August 2008, and as Treasurer from 2008 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2014. Buswell resigned in 2014 after a drink-driving controversy, and was succeeded at the resulting by-election by Libby Mettam. The by-election, which was not contested by the opposition Labor Party, saw the National Party cut the Liberal margin in Vasse to less than 4%.

Members for Vasse

MemberPartyTerm
  Stewart Bovell Liberal Country League 1950–1968
  Liberal 1968–1971
  Barry Blaikie Liberal 1971–1996
  Bernie Masters Liberal 1996–2004
  Independent 2004–2005
  Troy Buswell Liberal 2005–2014
  Libby Mettam Liberal 2014–present

Election results

2021 Western Australian state election: Vasse [1]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Libby Mettam 11,69744.1−2.1
Labor Chris Hossen8,99834.0+13.3
Greens Mia Krasenstein2,76510.4−3.4
National Peter Gordon1,1354.3−15.0
Shooters, Fishers, Farmers Cameron Van Veen5212.0+2.0
No Mandatory Vaccination A. W. Judd4891.8+1.8
Legalise Cannabis Neridah Rich4031.5+1.5
One Nation Jackson Wreford2531.0+1.0
Sustainable Australia Brad Satchell1910.7+0.7
WAxit Nicolas Oancea460.2+0.2
Total formal votes26,49896.5+0.5
Informal votes9583.5−0.5
Turnout 27,45687.8+2.8
Two-party-preferred result
Liberal Libby Mettam 14,38754.3−10.3
Labor Chris Hossen12,10745.7+10.3
Liberal hold Swing −10.3

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Busselton</span> City in the South West region of Western Australia

Busselton is a city in the South West region of the state of Western Australia approximately 220 km (140 mi) south-west of Perth. Busselton has a long history as a popular holiday destination for Western Australians; however, the closure of the Busselton Port in 1972 and the contemporaneous establishment of the nearby Margaret River wine region have seen tourism become the dominant source of investment and development, supplemented by services and retail. The city is best known for the Busselton Jetty, the longest wooden jetty in the Southern Hemisphere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral district of Darling Range</span> State electoral district in Perth, Western Australia

Darling Range is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Western Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral district of Southern River</span> State electoral district of Perth, Western Australia

Southern River is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the state of Western Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral district of Swan Hills</span> State electoral district in Perth, Western Australia

Swan Hills is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Western Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral district of Kimberley</span>

Kimberley is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia, located in the state's far north and named after the Kimberley region. The electorate has one of the highest Aboriginal enrolments of any seat in the Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral district of Cottesloe</span> State electoral district in Perth, Western Australia

Cottesloe is a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Western Australia. Cottesloe is named for the western Perth suburb of Cottesloe which falls within its borders. Its previous member, Colin Barnett, was the 29th Premier of Western Australia. The current member, David Honey, was elected in a by-election after Barnett resigned in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electoral district of Nedlands</span> State electoral district of Western Australia

Nedlands is a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Western Australia. Nedlands is named for the inner western Perth suburb of Nedlands which falls within its borders.

The electoral district of Capel was a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Western Australia. The district was named for the South West town of Capel, located between Bunbury and Busselton, which fell within its borders. The seat was abolished after only one term at the 2007 redistribution, taking effect from the 2008 election due to the one vote one value legislation. Most parts of the seat now fall within the new seat of Collie-Preston, which is regarded as a marginal Labor seat by Antony Green based on 2005 figures, with the Busselton portions becoming part of Vasse.

Paul Domenic Omodei, Australian politician, was the leader of the Liberal Party and Leader of the Opposition in Western Australia from 24 March 2006 until 17 January 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Troy Buswell</span> Australian politician

Troy Raymond Buswell is a former Australian politician who was a Liberal member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 2005 to 2014, representing the seat of Vasse. He was Treasurer of Western Australia in the Barnett Ministry from 2008 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2014, and also held several other portfolios.

Steven Caldwell Thomas is an Australian politician. He is a Liberal member of the Western Australian Legislative Council, having represented South West Region since 2017, and has been the deputy leader of the party since January 2023. He was previously a member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from February 2005 to September 2008 representing the electorate of Capel.

Barry John House is an Australian politician who was a Liberal Party member of the Legislative Council of Western Australia from 1987 to 2017. He was President of the Legislative Council from 2009 to 2017, and prior to entering politics worked as a schoolteacher.

Sussex was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Western Australia from 1890 to 1950.

William Richard Marmion is an Australian politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia between 2008 and 2021, representing the seat of Nedlands. He served as a minister in the government of Colin Barnett from 2010 to 2017. He later served as deputy leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2019 to 2020.

Bernard Kent Masters is a former Australian member of parliament who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1996 to 2005, representing the seat of Vasse. He was a member of the Liberal Party until 2004, when he resigned to sit as an independent.

This is a list of members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 2013 to 2017.

A by-election for the seat of Vasse in the Western Australian Legislative Assembly was held on 18 October 2014. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of Liberal MLA and former Liberal leader Troy Buswell on 3 September 2014, who won the seat at the 2013 election with a 57.3 percent primary and a 71.2 percent two-party vote. It was held on the same day as the 2014 Casuarina by-election in the Northern Territory.

Elizabeth Mettam is an Australian politician. She has been the Liberal member for Vasse in the Western Australian Legislative Assembly since a by-election held on 18 October 2014. She is the leader of the Western Australian Liberal Party since January 2023 and was the deputy leader of the party from December 2020 to January 2023. In the election, she was one of only two Liberal lower house MLAs to retain their seat, the other being David Honey.

Sir William Stewart Bovell was an Australian politician who was a member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly for the electorates of Sussex and Vasse between 1947 and 1971. Bovell served as a minister for over a decade under the premiership of Sir David Brand.

Barry Roy Blaikie was an Australian politician who was a Liberal Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1971 to 1996, representing the seat of Vasse.

References