Queensland state election, 1977

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Queensland state election, 1977
Flag of Queensland.svg
  1974 12 November 1977 (1977-11-12) 1980  

All 82 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland
42 Assembly seats were needed for a majority
 First partySecond party
  JBPetersen.jpg
Leader Joh Bjelke-Petersen Tom Burns
Party National/Liberal coalition Labor
Leader since8 August 196819 December 1974 (1974-12-19)
Leader's seat Barambah Lytton
Last election69 seats11 seats
Seats won59 seats23 seats
Seat changeDecrease2.svg10Increase2.svg12
Percentage52.37%42.83%
SwingDecrease2.svg5.14Increase2.svg6.80

Premier before election

Joh Bjelke-Petersen
National/Liberal coalition

Elected Premier

Joh Bjelke-Petersen
National/Liberal coalition

Elections were held in the Australian state of Queensland on 12 November 1977 to elect the 82 members of the state's Legislative Assembly.

Australia Country in Oceania

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country in Oceania and the world's sixth-largest country by total area. The neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north; the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east; and New Zealand to the south-east. The population of 25 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard. Australia's capital is Canberra, and its largest city is Sydney. The country's other major metropolitan areas are Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.

States and territories of Australia first-level subdivision of Australia

The states and territories are the first-level administrative divisions of the Commonwealth of Australia. They are the second level of government in Australia, located between the federal and local government tiers.

Queensland North-east state of Australia

Queensland is the second-largest and third-most populous state in the Commonwealth of Australia. Situated in the north-east of the country, it is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean. To its north is the Torres Strait, with Papua New Guinea located less than 200 km across it from the mainland. The state is the world's sixth-largest sub-national entity, with an area of 1,852,642 square kilometres (715,309 sq mi).

Contents

The election resulted in a fourth consecutive victory for the National-Liberal Coalition under Joh Bjelke-Petersen. It was the eighth victory of the National Party in Queensland since it first came to office in 1957.

The National Party, known as the Country Party until 1974, was a political party in Queensland, Australia, for much of the period from 1915 until 2008. Formed by the Queensland Farmers' Union and serving as the state branch of the National Party of Australia, it initially sought to represent the interests of the farmers but over time became a more general conservative political party in the state, leading to much debate about relations with other conservative parties and a string of mergers that were soon undone. From 1957 it held power as part of a coalition with the state Liberal Party until 1983 when the Liberals broke away and the Nationals continued to govern in their own right until defeat in 1989. The party formed another coalition with the Liberals that took power in 1996 but was defeated in 1998. After a further decade in opposition the two parties merged to form the Liberal National Party of Queensland.

The Liberal Party, originally the Queensland People's Party, was a political party in Queensland, Australia, from the Second World War until 2008. Initially formed as independent body in 1943, it became the Queensland division of the Liberal Party of Australia in 1949. Based predominantly in Brisbane and other cities in Queensland, from 1957 it held power as the junior party in a coalition with the state Country Party, later the National Party, until 1983 when the Liberals broke away and went into opposition. The party formed another coalition with the Nationals that took power in 1996 but was defeated in 1998. After a further decade in opposition the two parties merged to form the Liberal National Party of Queensland.

Joh Bjelke-Petersen Australian politician

Sir Johannes Bjelke-Petersen, was an Australian politician. He was the longest-serving and longest-lived Premier of Queensland, holding office from 1968 to 1987, during which time the state underwent considerable economic development. His uncompromising conservatism, his political longevity, and his leadership of a government that, in its later years, was revealed to be institutionally corrupt, made him one of the best-known and most controversial political figures of 20th century Australia.

Issues

The major issue in the election was law and order. In 1977, the Government had passed a law making it illegal to march in the street without a permit, which were rarely given. The Coalition argued that this prevented traffic disruption and other inconveniences to the people of Brisbane, while the ALP claimed that it was a curtailment of civil liberties. Joh Bjelke-Petersen also no longer had the Whitlam Labor Government (which was unpopular in Queensland) to use as a campaigning tool.

Brisbane capital city of Queensland, Australia

Brisbane is the capital of and the most populated city in the Australian state of Queensland, and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of approximately 2.5 million, and the South East Queensland metropolitan region, centred on Brisbane, encompasses a population of more than 3.6 million. The Brisbane central business district stands on the historic European settlement and is situated inside a peninsula of the Brisbane River, about 15 kilometres from its mouth at Moreton Bay. The metropolitan area extends in all directions along the floodplain of the Brisbane River Valley between Moreton Bay and the Great Dividing Range, sprawling across several of Australia's most populous local government areas (LGAs)—most centrally the City of Brisbane, which is by far the most populous LGA in the nation. The demonym of Brisbane is "Brisbanite" or "Brisbanian".

Civil liberties or personal freedoms are personal guarantees and freedoms that the government cannot abridge, either by law or by judicial interpretation, without due process. Though the scope of the term differs between countries, civil liberties may include the freedom of conscience, freedom of press, freedom of religion, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, the right to security and liberty, freedom of speech, the right to privacy, the right to equal treatment under the law and due process, the right to a fair trial, and the right to life. Other civil liberties include the right to own property, the right to defend oneself, and the right to bodily integrity. Within the distinctions between civil liberties and other types of liberty, distinctions exist between positive liberty/positive rights and negative liberty/negative rights.

Gough Whitlam Australian politician, 21st Prime Minister of Australia

Edward Gough Whitlam was the 21st Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The Leader of the Labor Party from 1967 to 1977, Whitlam led his party to power for the first time in 23 years at the 1972 election. He won the 1974 election before being controversially dismissed by the Governor-General of Australia, Sir John Kerr, at the climax of the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis. Whitlam remains the only Australian prime minister to have his commission terminated in that manner.

Result

The Labor Party gained twelve seats from the Coalition and Independents, making something of a recovery from its disastrous 1974 performance. Even so, the Coalition retained a commanding majority in the Legislative Assembly.

Australian Labor Party (Queensland Branch) State branch of the Australian Labor Party

The Australian Labor Party , commonly known as Queensland Labor is the Queensland branch of the Australian Labor Party.

For the first time, the National Party won more votes than the Liberal party (an electoral malaportionment had allowed the Nationals to win more seats than the Liberals previously). The Liberal Party had begun to decline.

The Bjelkemander was the term given to a system of malapportionment in the Australian state of Queensland in the 1970s and 1980s. Under the system, electorates were allocated to zones such as rural or metropolitan and electoral boundaries drawn so that rural electorates had about half as many voters as metropolitan ones. The Country Party, a rural-based party led by Joh Bjelke-Petersen, was able to govern uninhibited during this period due to the 'Bjelkemander' and the absence of an upper house of Parliament.

The Democratic Labor Party had ceased to exist. The Australian Democrats contested their first election in Queensland.

Democratic Labour Party (Australia) Australian political party

The Democratic Labour Party (DLP) is a political party in Australia that espouses social conservatism and favours distributism. The first DLP Senator in decades, John Madigan was elected for a six-year term to the Australian Senate with 2.3 per cent of the primary vote in Victoria at the 2010 federal election, serving from July 2011 until the July 2016 double dissolution election. In September 2014, Madigan resigned from the party and served the rest of his term as an independent, citing long-term internal party tensions.

Australian Democrats Australian political party

The Australian Democrats is a centrist political party in Australia. Founded in 1977 from a merger of the Australia Party and the New Liberal Movement, both of which were descended from Liberal Party splinter group, it was Australia's largest minor party from its formation in 1977 through to 2004 and frequently held the balance of power in the Senate during that time.

Results

Queensland state election, 12 November 1977 [1] [2]
Legislative Assembly
<< 19741980 >>

Enrolled voters1,209,494
Votes cast1,104,898 Turnout 91.35%+1.93%
Informal votes16,887Informal1.53%–0.05%
Summary of votes by party
PartyPrimary votes%SwingSeatsChange
  Labor 466,02142.83%+6.80%23+12
  Nationals 295,35527.15%–0.73%35– 4
  Liberal 274,39825.22%–5.87%24– 6
  Democrats 17,5711.61%+1.61%0± 0
  Progress 16,3271.50%+1.50%0± 0
  Independent 18,3391.69%–1.22%0– 2
Total1,088,011  82 

New parties in this election were the Australian Democrats, who stood 12 candidates, and the Progress Party, who stood 27 candidates. [3]

Seats changing hands

SeatPre-1977SwingPost-1977
PartyMemberMarginMarginMemberParty
Brisbane Central  Liberalnotional - new seat2.8-8.25.4 Brian Davis Labor 
Chatsworth  Liberal Bill Hewitt 5.7-6.81.1 Terry Mackenroth Labor 
Cook  National Eric Deeral 2.6-6.53.9 Bob Scott Labor 
Everton  Liberal Brian Lindsay 9.2-10.21.0 Glen Milliner Labor 
Ipswich West  National Albert Hales 1.1-5.44.3 David Underwood Labor 
Maryborough  Liberal Gilbert Alison 5.0-5.20.2 Brendan Hansen Labor 
Murrumba  National Des Frawley 9.7-11.11.4 Joe Kruger Labor 
South Brisbane  Liberal Colin Lamont 4.1-7.33.2 Jim Fouras Labor 
Southport  Nationalnotional - new seat19.4-29.29.8 Peter White Liberal 
Surfers Paradise  National Bruce Small 23.0-28.75.7 Bruce Bishop Liberal 
Townsville South  Independent Tom Aikens 0.6-1.61.0 Alex Wilson Labor 
Woodridge  Liberalnotional - new seat7.8-11.94.1 Bill D'Arcy Labor 
Wynnum  National Bill Lamond 0.1-4.24.1 Eric Shaw Labor 

Post-election pendulum

NATIONAL / LIBERAL SEATS (59)
Marginal
Barron River Martin Tenni NAT0.2%
Mourilyan Vicky Kippin NAT0.3%
Stafford Terry Gygar LIB0.5%
Mount Isa Angelo Bertoni NAT0.6%
Salisbury Rosemary Kyburz LIB0.7%
Townsville West Max Hooper NAT0.9%
Toowoomba North John Lockwood LIB1.6%
Wavell Brian Austin LIB2.8%
Kurilpa Sam Doumany LIB3.0%
Warrego Neil Turner NAT3.0%
Hinchinbrook Ted Row NAT3.1%
Pine Rivers Rob Akers LIB3.4%
Ipswich Llewellyn Edwards LIB4.1%
Windsor Bob Moore LIB4.5%
Ashgrove John Greenwood LIB4.9%
Toowoomba South John Warner NAT4.9%
Albert Ivan Gibbs NAT5.0%
Redlands John Goleby NAT5.4%
Whitsunday Ron Camm NAT5.5%
Surfers Paradise Bruce Bishop LIB5.7%
Fairly safe
Ithaca Col Miller LIB6.0%
Redcliffe Jim Houghton NAT6.2%
Townsville Norman Scott-Young LIB6.3%
Merthyr Don Lane LIB6.4%
Gregory Bill Glasson NAT6.8%
Flinders Bob Katter NAT7.1%
Peak Downs Vince Lester NAT7.8%
Nundah William Knox LIB8.1%
Yeronga Norm Lee LIB8.1%
Mulgrave Roy Armstrong NAT8.4%
Toowong Charles Porter LIB8.7%
Caboolture Des Frawley NAT9.0%
Isis Lin Powell NAT9.2%
South Coast Russ Hinze NAT9.3%
Southport Peter White LIB9.8% v NAT
Safe
Burdekin Val Bird NAT10.3%
Mount Gravatt Guelfi Scassola LIB10.4%
Fassifern Selwyn Muller NAT11.4%
Aspley Fred Campbell LIB11.5% v NAT
Mirani Tom Newbery NAT11.5%
Greenslopes Bill Hewitt LIB12.4%
Mansfield Bill Kaus LIB12.6%
Sherwood Angus Innes LIB12.9%
Carnarvon Peter McKechnie NAT13.5%
Callide Lindsay Hartwig NAT15.3%
Roma Ken Tomkins NAT16.0%
Somerset Bill Gunn NAT17.9%
Cooroora Gordon Simpson NAT18.1%
Landsborough Mike Ahern NAT18.2%
Gympie Max Hodges NAT18.8%
Warwick Des Booth NAT18.9%
Burnett Claude Wharton NAT19.3%
Mount Coot-tha Bill Lickiss LIB19.8%
Condamine Vic Sullivan NAT21.4%
Balonne Don Neal NAT21.9%
Auburn Neville Hewitt NAT22.3%
Lockyer Tony Bourke LIB22.5%
Barambah Joh Bjelke-Petersen NAT28.3%
Cunningham Tony Elliott NAT30.6%
LABOR SEATS (23)
Marginal
Maryborough Brendan Hansen ALP0.2% v LIB
Everton Glen Milliner ALP1.0% v LIB
Townsville South Alex Wilson ALP1.0% v IND
Chatsworth Terry Mackenroth ALP1.1% v LIB
Murrumba Joe Kruger ALP1.4%
South Brisbane Jim Fouras ALP3.2% v LIB
Cook Bob Scott ALP3.9%
Woodridge Bill D'Arcy ALP4.1% v LIB
Wynnum Eric Shaw ALP4.1%
Ipswich West David Underwood ALP4.3%
Bundaberg Jim Blake ALP4.4%
Brisbane Central Brian Davis ALP5.4% v LIB
Fairly safe
Sandgate Nev Warburton ALP8.0%
Nudgee Ken Vaughan ALP8.7% v LIB
Bulimba Jack Houston ALP9.8% v LIB
Safe
Wolston Bob Gibbs ALP10.6% v LIB
Cairns Ray Jones ALP11.4%
Port Curtis Bill Prest ALP11.8%
Mackay Ed Casey ALP11.9%
Rockhampton North Les Yewdale ALP16.2% v LIB
Lytton Tom Burns ALP17.0%
Rockhampton Keith Wright ALP17.3% v LIB
Archerfield Kevin Hooper ALP18.4% v LIB

See also

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References

  1. Australian Government and Politics Database. "Parliament of Queensland, Assembly election, 12 November 1977" . Retrieved 22 February 2009.
  2. Hughes, Colin A. (1986). A handbook of Australian government and politics, 1975-1984. ANU Press. p. 204. ISBN   978-0-08-033038-9.
  3. Cribb, M.N.B. (April 1978). "Australian Political Chronicle: July–December 1977". Australian Journal of Politics and History. 24 (1): 92. ISSN   0004-9522.