1907 Victorian state election

The 1907 Victorian state election was held in the Australian state of Victoria on Friday, 15 March 1907 to elect 45 of the 65 members of the state's Legislative Assembly.[1] The other 20 seats were uncontested.

1907 Victorian state election
15 March 1907 (1907-03-15)
the 65 seats in the Victorian Legislative Assembly
  First party Third party
 
Leader Thomas Bent George Prendergast
Party United Liberal Labor
Leader since 1904
Leader's seat Brighton North Melbourne
Last election New party 17 seats
Seats won 51 seats 14 seats
Seat change Increase 51 Decrease 3
Percentage 51.36% 34.40%
Swing Increase 51.36% Increase 1.85%
Premier before election

Thomas Bent
United Liberal

 Elected Premier

Thomas Bent
United Liberal

The election was in one member districts, using first past the post (plurality) voting.

Background

Ministerialists were a group of members of parliament who supported a government in office but were not bound by tight party discipline. Ministerialists represented loose pre-party groupings who held seats in state parliaments up to 1914. Such members ran for office as independents or under a variety of political labels but saw themselves as linked to other candidates by their support for a particular premier or government.

The National Citizens' Reform League, led by Thomas Bent, had disbanded shortly after the 1904 state election, leading to the majority of Liberals and Conservatives sitting separately again.[2][3]

Bent formed the United Liberal Party in February 1907.[2] Without Liberal Ministerialists and Liberal Oppositionists competing against each other, three-sided contests were largely eliminated, causing Labor to lose the seats of Ballarat and Geelong.[4]

Results
Legislative Assembly (FPTP)[1][4]
Party Votes  % Swing Seats Change
  United Liberal 59,785 51.36 +51.36 49 Increase 49
  Labor 40,044 34.40 +1.85 14 Decrease 3
  Independent Ministerialists 11,029 9.47 +4.55 1 Increase 1
  Independent Labor 2,795 2.40 +1.03 1 Increase 1
  Independent 2,754 2.37 +1.75 0 Steady
 Formal votes 116,407 99.41
 Informal votes 0.59
 Total 65
 Registered voters / turnout 261,080 61.27 –9.70

See also

References
  1. "Australian Politics and Elections Database: 15 March 1907". University of Western Australia. Retrieved 27 June 2015.
  2. "1900-1919: turbulent years". Victorian Electoral Commission.
  3. "A Union of Farmers". The Advocate. 9 July 1904.
  4. "THE TWENTY-FIRST PARLIAMENT ELECTED 15 MARCH 1907". Psephos: Adam Carr's Electoral Archive.


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