Senate composition at 17 February 1976
Government (35) - (2 seat majority)
Liberal (26)
Country Party (8)
Country Liberal (1)
Opposition (27)
Labor (27)
Crossbench (2)
Liberal Movement (1) [a]
Independent (Harradine) (1)
Changes in composition
- ^ Steele Hall joined the Liberal party in 1976 on the break-up of the Liberal Movement. Hall resigned from the Senate in 1977 and Janine Haines, who had joined the Democrats on the break-up of the Liberal Movement, was appointed to fill the vacancy on 14 December.
This is a list of members of the Australian Senate from 1975 to 1978.[1] The 13 December 1975 election was a double dissolution of both houses, with all 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 64 seats in the Senate up for election. Malcolm Fraser had been commissioned as prime minister following the dismissal of Gough Whitlam's Labor government by Governor-General Sir John Kerr, on 11 November 1975. The same day, Fraser advised the calling of the election, in accordance with Kerr's stipulated conditions. Thus the Liberal Party of Australia, led by Fraser, with Coalition partner the National Country Party, led by Doug Anthony, went to the election as a caretaker government. The election resulted in the Coalition securing government with a 30-seat swing away from Labor in the House of Representatives.
In accordance with section 13 of the Constitution, following a double dissolution of Parliament, the terms for state senators commence on 1 July preceding the election, i.e., on 1 July 1975. The first five senators elected in each State were allocated full six-year terms ending on 30 June 1981 while the other half were allocated three-year terms ending on 30 June 1978.[2]
There were two significant changes that affected the composition of the Senate.
- The Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory were to be represented in the Senate for the first time.[3] The terms of senators representing the territories commenced on the date of the election and ended at the dissolution of the House of Representatives, in this case the December 1977 election.
- A person appointed to a casual vacancy must be from the same political party as the original senator and is appointed until the end of the original term.
Austin Lewis had been appointed under the former system, however his term was extended to the end of the original term of 30 June 1981 as a result of the 1977 referendum.[4][5] The first vacancy occurring under the new process was caused by the resignation of Steele Hall, who had been a member of the Liberal Movement but had joined the Liberal party in 1976 on the break-up of the Liberal Movement. Janine Haines was appointed to replace Hall, having been third on the Liberal Movement ticket in 1975,[6] however she was no longer a member of the Liberal Movement, having joined the Democrats.[7]
Senator | Party | State | Term ending | Years in office | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Brian Archer | Liberal | Tasmania | 1978 | 1975–1994 | |
Peter Baume | Liberal | New South Wales | 1978 | 1974–1991 | |
Reg Bishop | Labor | South Australia | 1981 | 1961–1981 | |
Neville Bonner | Liberal | Queensland | 1981 | 1971–1983 | |
Bill Brown | Labor | Victoria | 1978 | 1969–1970, 1971–1978 | |
John Button | Labor | Victoria | 1978 | 1974–1993 | |
Don Cameron | Labor | South Australia | 1978 | 1969–1978 | |
John Carrick | Liberal | New South Wales | 1981 | 1970–1987 | |
Jim Cavanagh | Labor | South Australia | 1981 | 1961–1981 | |
Fred Chaney | Liberal | Western Australia | 1978 | 1974–1990 | |
Ruth Coleman | Labor | Western Australia | 1978 | 1974–1987 | |
Stan Collard | National Country | Queensland | 1978 | 1975–1987 | |
Mal Colston | Labor | Queensland | 1978 | 1975–1999 | |
Sir Magnus Cormack | Liberal | Victoria | 1978 | 1951–1953, 1962–1978 | |
Bob Cotton | Liberal | New South Wales | 1981 | 1965–1978 | |
Gordon Davidson | Liberal | South Australia | 1981 | 1961, 1962, 1965–1981 | |
Don Devitt | Labor | Tasmania | 1978 | 1965–1978 | |
Tom Drake-Brockman | National Country | Western Australia | 1978 | 1958, 1959–1978 | |
Peter Durack | Liberal | Western Australia | 1981 | 1970–1993 | |
George Georges | Labor | Queensland | 1978 | 1967–1987 | |
Arthur Gietzelt | Labor | New South Wales | 1978 | 1970–1989 | |
Ivor Greenwood [a] | Liberal | Victoria | 1981 | 1968–1976 | |
Don Grimes | Labor | Tasmania | 1978 | 1974–1987 | |
Margaret Guilfoyle | Liberal | Victoria | 1981 | 1970–1987 | |
Janine Haines [b] | Democrats | South Australia | 1978 | 1977–1978, 1980–1990 | |
Steele Hall [b] | Liberal Movement/Liberal | South Australia | 1978 | 1974–1977 | |
Brian Harradine | Independent | Tasmania | 1981 | 1975–2005 | |
Don Jessop | Liberal | South Australia | 1981 | 1970–1991 | |
Jim Keeffe | Labor | Queensland | 1981 | 1964–1983 | |
Bernie Kilgariff | Country Liberal | Northern Territory | 1977, 1980 [c] | 1975–1987 | |
John Knight | Liberal | Australian Capital Territory | 1977, 1980 [c] | 1975–1981 | |
Misha Lajovic | Liberal | New South Wales | 1978 | 1975–1985 | |
Sir Condor Laucke | Liberal | South Australia | 1981 | 1967–1981 | |
Austin Lewis [a] | Liberal | Victoria | 1977, 1981 | 1976–1993 | |
Kathy Martin | Liberal | Queensland | 1978 | 1974–1984 | |
Ron Maunsell | National Country | Queensland | 1981 | 1967–1981 | |
Ron McAuliffe | Labor | Queensland | 1981 | 1970–1981 | |
Doug McClelland | Labor | New South Wales | 1981 | 1961–1987 | |
Jim McClelland | Labor | New South Wales | 1981 | 1970–1978 | |
Gordon McIntosh | Labor | Western Australia | 1981 | 1974–1987 | |
Geoff McLaren | Labor | South Australia | 1978 | 1970–1983 | |
Jean Melzer | Labor | Victoria | 1981 | 1974–1981 | |
Tony Messner | Liberal | South Australia | 1978 | 1975–1990 | |
Alan Missen | Liberal | Victoria | 1978 | 1974–1986 | |
Tony Mulvihill | Labor | New South Wales | 1978 | 1964–1983 | |
Justin O'Byrne [d] | Labor | Tasmania | 1981 | 1947–1981 | |
Cyril Primmer | Labor | Victoria | 1981 | 1971–1985 | |
Peter Rae | Liberal | Tasmania | 1981 | 1967–1986 | |
Ted Robertson | Labor | Northern Territory | 1977, 1980 [c] | 1975–1987 | |
Susan Ryan | Labor | Australian Capital Territory | 1977, 1980 [c] | 1975–1988 | |
Douglas Scott | National Country | New South Wales | 1981 | 1970, 1974–1985 | |
Glen Sheil | National Country | Queensland | 1981 | 1974–1981 | |
Kerry Sibraa | Labor | New South Wales | 1978 | 1975–1978, 1978–1994 | |
Peter Sim | Liberal | Western Australia | 1981 | 1964–1981 | |
Tom Tehan | National Country | Victoria | 1978 | 1975–1978 | |
Andrew Thomas | Liberal | Western Australia | 1978 | 1975–1983 | |
Michael Townley | Liberal | Tasmania | 1981 | 1970–1987 | |
Peter Walsh | Labor | Western Australia | 1978 | 1974–1993 | |
Shirley Walters | Liberal | Tasmania | 1978 | 1975–1993 | |
James Webster | National Country | Victoria | 1981 | 1964–1981 | |
John Wheeldon | Labor | Western Australia | 1981 | 1964–1981 | |
Rt Reg Withers | Liberal | Western Australia | 1981 | 1966, 1967–1987 | |
Ian Wood | Liberal | Queensland | 1978 | 1950–1978 | |
Ken Wriedt | Labor | Tasmania | 1981 | 1964–1980 | |
Reg Wright | Liberal | Tasmania | 1978 | 1950–1978 | |
Harold Young | Liberal | South Australia | 1978 | 1968–1981 |
Notes
- ^ a b Liberal Ivor Greenwood died on 13 October 1976; Liberal Austin Lewis was appointed to fill the ensuing vacancy on 17 December. Lewis's term would have ended in December 1977, being the earlier of the next election for the House of Representatives or the Senate,[8] however his term was extended to the end of Greenwood's original term on 30 June 1981 as a result of the 1977 referendum.[4][5]
- ^ a b Senator Steele Hall had been elected as a member of the Liberal Movement, however the party broke up and he joined the Liberal party in June 1976. Hall resigned from the Senate on 16 November 1977 to contest the House of Representatives seat of Hawker. Democrats Janine Haines was appointed to fill the ensuing vacancy on 14 December.
- ^ a b c d The term of a territory senator ends at the dissolution of the House of Representatives which was December 1977.
- ^ Father of the Senate
References
- ^ "The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate 1975". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
- ^ Reg Withers (18 February 1976). "Rotation of Senators". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Commonwealth of Australia: Senate.
- ^ Senate (Representation of Territories) Act 1973 (Cth).
- ^ a b Constitution Alteration (Senate Casual Vacancies) Act 1977 (Cth).
- ^ a b Gerard Newman (14 May 2002). "Senate Casual Vacancies". Research Note no.35 2001-2001. Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
- ^ "1975 Senate election: South Australia". Psephos: Adam Carr's Election Archive.
- ^ "Haines, Janine (1945–2004)". The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate. Parliament of Australia.
- ^ Evans, H. "Filling Casual Vacancies before 1977" (PDF). The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate, Volume 3. Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
- Journal of the Senate. Parliament of Australia. 1978.
- "Members of the Senate since 1901". Parliamentary Handbook. Parliament of Australia. Archived from the original on 25 July 2008. Retrieved 20 November 2008.