List of longest-serving members of the Parliament of Australia

Last updated December 15, 2024

Billy Hughes (left) and George Pearce (right), the longest-serving members of the House of Representatives and Senate, respectively.

This article lists the longest-serving members of the Parliament of Australia.

Longest total service

This section lists members of parliament who have served for a cumulative total of at least 30 years.

All these periods of service were spent in one House exclusively. A number of people have served in both the Senate and the House of Representatives,^[1] but none of them to date has had an aggregate length of service to the Parliament reaching 30 years.

No woman yet appears on this list. Bronwyn Bishop served in the Australian parliament longer than any other woman, in October 2014 outstripping the record of 27 years and 119 days previously held by Kathy Sullivan.^[2] At the end of her term at the 2 July 2016 double dissolution, Bishop had served for 28 years and 274 days.

Name		Chamber(s)	Start of service	End of service	Period of service
Hughes, Billy Billy Hughes	Labor/Nationalist/UAP/Liberal	House of Reps	29 March 1901	28 October 1952†	51 years, 213 days
Ruddock, Philip Philip Ruddock	Liberal	House of Reps	22 September 1973	9 May 2016	42 years, 229 days
Page, EarleSir Earle Page	Country	House of Reps	13 December 1919	9 December 1961	41 years, 362 days
Pearce, GeorgeSir George Pearce	Labor/Nationalist/UAP	Senate	29 March 1901	30 June 1938	37 years, 94 days
Cooper, WalterSir Walter Cooper	Country	Senate	17 November 1928	30 June 1932	36 years, 227 days
Cooper, WalterSir Walter Cooper	Country	Senate	1 July 1935	30 June 1968	36 years, 227 days
Maloney, William William Maloney	Labor	House of Reps	30 March 1904	27 August 1940†	36 years, 151 days
McEwen, JohnSir John McEwen	Country	House of Reps	15 September 1934	1 February 1971	36 years, 139 days
Makin, Norman Norman Makin	Labor	House of Reps	13 December 1919	14 August 1946	36 years, 37 days
Makin, Norman Norman Makin	Labor	House of Reps	29 May 1954	1 November 1963	36 years, 37 days
Brennan, Frank Frank Brennan	Labor	House of Reps	8 February 1911	19 December 1931	35 years, 362 days
Brennan, Frank Frank Brennan	Labor	House of Reps	15 September 1934	31 October 1949	35 years, 362 days
Clark, Joe Joe Clark	Labor	House of Reps	15 September 1934	29 September 1969	35 years, 15 days
Sinclair, Ian Ian Sinclair	National	House of Reps	30 November 1963	31 August 1998	34 years, 275 days
Watkins, David David Watkins	Labor	House of Reps	29 March 1901	8 April 1935†	34 years, 11 days
O'Byrne, Justin Justin O'Byrne	Labor	Senate	1 July 1947	30 June 1981	34 years, 0 days
Howard, John John Howard	Liberal	House of Reps	18 May 1974	24 November 2007	33 years, 191 days
Cadman, Alan Alan Cadman	Liberal	House of Reps	18 May 1974	17 October 2007	33 years, 152 days
Brown, Gordon Gordon Brown	Labor	Senate	1 July 1932	30 June 1965	33 years, 0 days
Groom, LittletonSir Littleton Groom	Protectionist/Liberal/Nationalist/UAP	House of Reps	14 September 1901	12 October 1929	32 years, 353 days
Groom, LittletonSir Littleton Groom	Protectionist/Liberal/Nationalist/UAP	House of Reps	19 December 1931	6 November 1936†	32 years, 353 days
Francis, JosiahSir Josiah Francis	Nationalist/UAP/Liberal	House of Reps	16 December 1922	4 November 1955	32 years, 324 days
Holt, Harold Harold Holt	UAP/Liberal	House of Reps	17 August 1935	17 December 1967†	32 years, 123 days
Ward, Eddie Eddie Ward	Labor/Lang Labor	House of Reps	7 March 1931	19 December 1931	32 years, 99 days
Ward, Eddie Eddie Ward	Labor/Lang Labor	House of Reps	6 February 1932	31 July 1963†	32 years, 99 days
Beazley, Kim Kim Beazley Sr.	Labor	House of Reps	18 August 1945	10 November 1977	32 years, 85 days
Daly, Fred Fred Daly	Labor	House of Reps	21 August 1943	11 November 1975	32 years, 83 days
Snowdon, Warren Warren Snowdon	Labor	House of Reps	11 July 1987	2 March 1996	32 years, 60 days
Snowdon, Warren Warren Snowdon	Labor	House of Reps	3 October 1998	11 April 2022	32 years, 60 days
Calwell, Arthur Arthur Calwell	Labor	House of Reps	21 September 1940	2 November 1972	32 years, 43 days
McMahon, WilliamSir William McMahon	Liberal	House of Reps	10 December 1949	4 January 1982	32 years, 26 days
Katter, Bob Bob Katter	National/Independent/KAP	House of Reps	13 March 1993	present	31 years, 276 days
Lynch, Patrick Patrick Lynch	Labor/Nationalist/UAP	Senate	1 January 1907	30 June 1938	31 years, 181 days
Menzies, RobertSir Robert Menzies	UAP/Liberal	House of Reps	15 September 1934	17 February 1966	31 years, 156 days
Boswell, Ron Ron Boswell	National	Senate	5 March 1983	30 June 2014	31 years, 117 days
Uren, Tom Tom Uren	Labor	House of Reps	22 November 1958	19 February 1990	31 years, 90 days
Andrews, Kevin Kevin Andrews	Liberal	House of Reps	11 May 1991	11 April 2022	30 years, 335 days
Scullin, James James Scullin	Labor	House of Reps	13 April 1910	31 May 1913	30 years, 304 days
Scullin, James James Scullin	Labor	House of Reps	18 February 1922	31 October 1949	30 years, 304 days
Cameron, Clyde Clyde Cameron	Labor	House of Reps	10 December 1949	19 September 1980	30 years, 285 days
Jull, David David Jull	Liberal	House of Reps	13 December 1975	5 March 1983	30 years, 39 days
Jull, David David Jull	Liberal	House of Reps	1 December 1984	17 October 2007	30 years, 39 days
Lazzarini, Hubert Bert Lazzarini	Labor	House of Reps	13 December 1919	19 December 1931	30 years, 24 days
Lazzarini, Hubert Bert Lazzarini	Labor	House of Reps	15 September 1934	1 October 1952†	30 years, 24 days
Crawford, Thomas Thomas Crawford	Nationalist/UAP/Independent	Senate	1 July 1917	30 June 1947	30 years, 0 days
Foll, Harry Harry Foll	Nationalist/UAP/Liberal	Senate	1 July 1917	30 June 1947	30 years, 0 days
Watson, John John Watson	Liberal	Senate	1 July 1978	30 June 2008	30 years, 0 days

†= Died in office

Longest service by women

Name		Chamber(s)	Start of service	End of service	Period of service
Bronwyn Bishop	Liberal	Senate	11 July 1987	24 February 1994	28 years, 272 days
Bronwyn Bishop	Liberal	House of Reps	26 March 1994	9 May 2016	28 years, 272 days
Kathy Sullivan	Liberal	Senate	18 May 1974	5 November 1984	27 years, 117 days
Kathy Sullivan	Liberal	House of Reps	1 December 1984	8 October 2001	27 years, 117 days
Marise Payne	Liberal	Senate	9 April 1997	30 September 2023	26 years, 174 days
Tanya Plibersek	Labor	House of Reps	3 October 1998	present	26 years, 72 days
Dorothy Tangney	Labor	Senate	21 August 1943	30 June 1968	24 years, 314 days
Annabelle Rankin	Liberal	Senate	1 July 1947	24 April 1971	23 years, 297 days
Jenny Macklin	Labor	House of Reps	2 March 1996	11 April 2019	23 years, 40 days
Catherine King	Labor	House of Reps	10 November 2001	present	23 years, 34 days
Sussan Ley	Liberal	House of Reps	10 November 2001	present	23 years, 34 days
Maria Vamvakinou	Labor	House of Reps	10 November 2001	present	23 years, 34 days
Amanda Vanstone	Liberal	Senate	1 December 1984	26 April 2007	22 years, 146 days
Penny Wong	Labor	Senate	1 July 2002	present	22 years, 166 days
Margaret Reid	Liberal	Senate	5 May 1981	14 February 2003	21 years, 285 days
Ivy Wedgwood	Liberal	Senate	22 February 1950	30 June 1971	21 years, 128 days
Kay Patterson	Liberal	Senate	11 July 1987	30 June 2008	20 years, 355 days
Jacinta Collins	Labor	Senate	3 May 1995	30 June 2005	20 years, 341 days
Jacinta Collins	Labor	Senate	8 May 2008	15 February 2019	20 years, 341 days
Sue Knowles	Liberal	Senate	1 December 1984	30 June 2005	20 years, 211 days
Julie Bishop	Liberal	House of Reps	3 October 1998	11 April 2019	20 years, 190 days
Judi Moylan	Liberal	House of Reps	13 March 1993	5 August 2013	20 years, 145 days
Sharman Stone	Liberal	House of Reps	2 March 1996	9 May 2016	20 years, 68 days

Chronological list

This section lists the members of parliament (and of each chamber) with the longest continuous service at any given time. The longest-serving MPs in each chamber are sometimes referred to as the "Father of the House" and "Father of the Senate", and very rarely the overall longest-serving MP is called the "Father of the Parliament".

House of Representatives Practice describes the title "Father of the House" as a "completely informal designation" with "no functions attached to it".^[3]

Odgers' Australian Senate Practice notes that the title "Father of the Senate" is "now seldom referred to or used". It further notes that "as no woman senator has ever been in this situation, it is not clear what the title would be in that circumstance".^[4] Since then, the title was assumed by Marise Payne, the longest serving female senator in Australia's history. After Payne's resignation took effect, Penny Wong, also a woman, became the longest serving incumbent senator.

From	To	Overall	Senate	Continuous term started	House	Continuous term started
29/30 March 1901	14 September 1923	Nil	Nil	n/a	Nil	n/a
15 September 1923	8 April 1935	Nil	Sir George Pearce	29 March 1901	Billy Hughes David Watkins	n/a
9 April 1935	30 June 1938	Nil^[5]	Sir George Pearce	29 March 1901	Billy Hughes	30 March 1901
1 July 1938	30 June 1947	Billy Hughes MP	Thomas Crawford Harry Foll	1 July 1917
1 July 1947	30 June 1950		Gordon Brown Joe Collings	1 July 1932
1 July 1950	28 October 1952		Gordon Brown
29 October 1952	9 December 1961	Sir Earle Page MP			Sir Earle Page	13 December 1919
10 December 1961	31 July 1963	Eddie Ward MP			Eddie Ward	6 February 1932
1 August 1963	30 June 1965	Senator Gordon Brown			Joe Clark John McEwen Sir Robert Menzies	15 September 1934
1 July 1965	16 February 1966	Joe Clark MP John McEwen MP Sir Robert Menzies MP	Sir Walter Cooper	1 July 1935	Joe Clark John McEwen Sir Robert Menzies
17 February 1966	30 June 1968	Joe Clark MP John McEwen MP	Sir Walter Cooper	1 July 1935	Joe Clark John McEwen
1 July 1968	29 September 1969	Joe Clark MP John McEwen MP	Bert Hendrickson Justin O'Byrne Dame Annabelle Rankin	1 July 1947	Joe Clark John McEwen
30 September 1969	1 February 1971	John McEwen MP			John McEwen
2 February 1971	24 May 1971	Arthur Calwell MP			Arthur Calwell	21 September 1940
25 May 1971	30 June 1971		Bert Hendrickson Justin O'Byrne
1 July 1971	2 November 1972		Justin O'Byrne
3 November 1972	11 November 1975	Fred Daly MP			Fred Daly	21 August 1943
12 November 1975	10 November 1977	Kim Beazley Sr. MP			Kim Beazley Sr.	18 August 1945
11 November 1977	19 September 1980	Senator Justin O'Byrne			Clyde Cameron Sir William McMahon	10 December 1949
20 September 1980	30 June 1981	Senator Justin O'Byrne			Sir William McMahon
1 July 1981	4 January 1982	Sir William McMahon MP	Doug McClelland	1 July 1962	Sir William McMahon
5 January 1982	31 March 1983	Malcolm Fraser MP Sir James Killen MP Sir Billy Snedden MP			Malcolm Fraser Sir James Killen Sir Billy Snedden	10 December 1955
1 April 1983	21 April 1983	Sir James Killen MP Sir Billy Snedden MP			Sir James Killen Sir Billy Snedden
22 April 1983	15 August 1983	Sir James Killen MP			Sir James Killen
16 August 1983	18 January 1984	Doug Anthony MP			Doug Anthony	14 September 1957
19 January 1984	23 January 1987	Tom Uren MP			Tom Uren	22 November 1958
24 January 1987	27 February 1989		Arthur Gietzelt Peter Durack	1 July 1971
28 February 1989	19 February 1990		Peter Durack
20 February 1990	30 June 1993	Ian Sinclair MP	Peter Durack		Ian Sinclair	30 November 1963
1 July 1993	31 August 1998	Ian Sinclair MP	Mal Colston Brian Harradine	13 December 1975	Ian Sinclair	30 November 1963
1 September 1998	30 June 1999	Philip Ruddock MP	Mal Colston Brian Harradine		Philip Ruddock	22 September 1973
1 July 1999	30 June 2005		Brian Harradine
1 July 2005	30 June 2008		John Watson	1 July 1978
1 July 2008	30 June 2014		Ron Boswell	5 March 1983
1 July 2014	6 February 2015		John Faulkner	4 April 1989
6 February 2015	9 May 2016		Ian Macdonald	1 July 1990
9 May 2016	30 June 2019	Senator Ian Macdonald	Ian Macdonald	1 July 1990	Kevin Andrews	11 May 1991
1 July 2019	11 April 2022	Kevin Andrews MP	Kim Carr	28 April 1993	Kevin Andrews	11 May 1991
11 April 2022	1 July 2022	Bob Katter MP	Kim Carr	28 April 1993	Bob Katter	13 March 1993
1 July 2022	30 September 2023		Marise Payne	9 April 1997
30 September 2023	-		Penny Wong	1 July 2002

Longest-serving members by state and territory

State / Territory	Longest-serving members
State / Territory	Lower house	Upper house	Overall
Australian Capital Territory	Jim Fraser 18 years, 338 days 1951–1970	Margaret Reid 21 years, 285 days 1981–2003	Bob McMullan 22 years, 86 days 1988–1996 (S), 1996–2010 (H)
New South Wales	Billy Hughes 45 years, 354 days 1901–1917, 1922–1952	Stan Amour 26 years, 364 days 1938–1965	Billy Hughes 45 years, 354 days 1901–1917, 1922–1952
Northern Territory	Warren Snowdon 32 years, 60 days 1987–1996, 1998–2022	Nigel Scullion 17 years, 232 days 2001–2019	Warren Snowdon 32 years, 60 days 1987–1996, 1998–2022
Queensland	Littleton Groom 32 years, 353 days 1901–1929, 1931–1936	Walter Cooper 36 years, 227 days 1928–1932, 1935–1968	Walter Cooper 36 years, 227 days 1928–1932, 1935–1968
South Australia	Norman Makin 36 years, 37 days 1919–1946, 1955–1963	Robert Hill 24 years, 257 days 1981–2006	Norman Makin 36 years, 37 days 1919–1946, 1955–1963
Tasmania	Gil Duthie 29 years, 76 days 1946–1975	Justin O'Byrne 34 years, 0 days 1947–1981	Justin O'Byrne 34 years, 0 days 1947–1981
Victoria	William Maloney 36 years, 151 days 1904–1940	Kim Carr 29 years, 63 days 1993–2022	William Maloney 36 years, 151 days 1904–1940
Western Australia	Kim Beazley Sr. 32 years, 145 days 1945–1977	George Pearce 37 years, 93 days 1901–1938	George Pearce 37 years, 93 days 1901–1938

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References

↑ Handbook of the 42nd Parliament: Members who have served in both chambers
↑ Wilson, Janet, & McCann, Dr Joy (9 July 2014). "Representation of women in Australian parliaments 2014". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 11 December 2014.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ "Titles accorded to members". House of Representatives Practice (6th ed.). Parliament of Australia. 2012.
↑ "Seniority of senators". Odgers' Australian Senate Practice (14th ed.). Parliament of Australia. 2016.
↑ Although Senator Sir George Pearce and Billy Hughes MP were elected on different dates (29 March and 30 March 1901 respectively), all members of the First Parliament were considered to be of equal seniority.

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[1] Handbook of the 42nd Parliament: Members who have served in both chambers

[2] Wilson, Janet, & McCann, Dr Joy (9 July 2014). "Representation of women in Australian parliaments 2014". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 11 December 2014.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[3] "Titles accorded to members". House of Representatives Practice (6th ed.). Parliament of Australia. 2012.

[4] "Seniority of senators". Odgers' Australian Senate Practice (14th ed.). Parliament of Australia. 2016.

[5] Although Senator Sir George Pearce and Billy Hughes MP were elected on different dates (29 March and 30 March 1901 respectively), all members of the First Parliament were considered to be of equal seniority.

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