President of the Victorian Legislative Council

Last updated
President of the Legislative Council
Coat of Arms of Victoria.svg
Incumbent
Shaun Leane (Labor)
since 20 December 2022
Style The Honourable
AppointerElected by the Victorian Legislative Council
Inaugural holder Sir James Frederick Palmer
Formation21 November 1856
Deputy Wendy Lovell [1]
Website Parliament of Victoria: Former members

The President of the Victorian Legislative Council, also known as the presiding officer of the council, is the presiding officer of the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house of the Parliament of Victoria and equivalent to the President of the Australian Senate. When there is a vacancy in the office of president, a new president is elected by the members of the council from among its number. The president ceases to hold that office if they cease to be a member of the council, and can be removed at any time by a vote of the members. The current president is Shaun Leane. [2]

Contents

The role of the president

The president is always a member of the Victorian Legislative Council, and is the ceremonial head of that council. The president performs ceremonial duties, and represents the council to other organisations. In conjunction with the Speaker of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, the president is responsible for the administration of the Victorian Parliament. When the council is sitting, the president enforces procedures and assists the smooth running of council meetings. The president is assisted in their duties by a deputy president. [3]

Choosing the president

The president of the Legislative Council is an elected position. When a new president is required, any member of the Legislative Council may propose, during a council sitting, any other present member for the position of president. If more than one member is proposed and seconded, all members must agree to one particular candidate. After election, the president presents his or herself as the choice of the council to be their president. [3]

List of presidents of the Legislative Council

Note: where no political party is listed, this means that either the party is unknown, or that the President in question was not affiliated with any particular party. Multiple parties are listed in cases where the President represented more than one party over his career as a Member of the Legislative Council.
OrdinalPresidentParty (if applicable)Term startTerm endTime in officeNotes
1 Sir James Frederick Palmer no party alignment21 November 18561 August 187013 years, 253 days [4]
2 Sir William Mitchell 27 October 187024 November 188414 years, 28 days
3 Sir James MacBain 27 November 18848 November 18927 years, 347 days
4 Sir William Zeal 10 November 189231 May 19018 years, 202 days
5 Sir Henry John Wrixon 18 June 190128 June 19109 years, 10 days
6 Sir John Mark Davies 6 July 191030 June 19198 years, 359 days
7 Sir Walter Manifold Nationalist 8 July 191928 August 19234 years, 51 days
8 Sir Frank Clarke 29 August 192330 June 194319 years, 305 days
9 Sir Clifden Eager
29 June 194330 June 195815 years, 1 day
10 Sir Gordon McArthur
  • Liberal & Country
  • Liberal
8 July 195810 August 19657 years, 33 days
11 Sir Ronald Mack Liberal14 September 196512 February 19682 years, 151 days
12 Sir Raymond Garrett 20 February 196830 June 19768 years, 131 days
13 William Fry 29 June 19761 July 19793 years, 2 days
14 Fred Grimwade 18 July 197915 July 19855 years, 362 days
15 Rod Mackenzie Labor 16 July 198524 October 19883 years, 100 days
16 Alan Hunt Liberal25 October 198826 October 19924 years, 1 day
17 Bruce Chamberlain 27 October 199224 February 200310 years, 120 days
18 Monica Gould Labor25 February 200318 December 20063 years, 296 days
19 Bob Smith 19 December 200620 December 20104 years, 1 day
20 Bruce Atkinson Liberal21 December 201019 December 20187 years, 363 days
21 Shaun Leane Labor19 December 201818 June 20201 year, 182 days
22 Nazih Elasmar 18 June 202020 December 20222 years, 185 days
(21) Shaun Leane 20 December 2022Incumbent2 years, 231 days

References

  1. ↑ "The Hon. Wendy Lovell". Members of Parliament. Parliament of Victoria . Retrieved 9 August 2025.
  2. ↑ "The Hon. Shaun Leane". Parliament of Victoria . Retrieved 9 August 2025.
  3. 1 2 "People in Parliament". Parliament of Victoria . Retrieved 30 July 2025.
  4. ↑ "Former Presidents of the Legislative Council". Parliament of Victoria . Retrieved 30 July 2015.
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