Melville was an electoral district

Electoral districts of Western Australia

The Western Australian Legislative Assembly is elected from 59 single-member electoral districts. These districts are often referred to as electorates or seats....

 of the Legislative Assembly

Western Australian Legislative Assembly

The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Perth....

 in the Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n state of Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

 from 1950 to 1996.

The district was based in the southern suburbs of Perth

Perth, Western Australia

Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....

, and in the main roughly corresponds today to the district of Willagee

Electoral district of Willagee

Willagee is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Western Australia.The district is located in the southern suburbs of Perth.Willagee has at all times been a safe Labor seat.-Geography:...

 and parts of Alfred Cove

Electoral district of Alfred Cove

The Electoral district of Alfred Cove is a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Western Australia. The district is named for the southern riverside Perth suburb of Alfred Cove which falls within its borders.-History:...

.

History

First contested at the 1950 state election, the seat's inaugural member was John Tonkin

John Tonkin

John Trezise Tonkin AC , popularly known as "Honest John", was the 20th Premier of Western Australia , taking power after the almost 12 year term of Liberal Sir David Brand....

 of the Labor Party

Australian Labor Party

The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...

, hitherto the member for North-East Fremantle

Electoral district of North-East Fremantle

North-East Fremantle was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Western Australia from 1897 to 1911.Based in urban Fremantle, the district was first contested at the 1911 state election, being an amalgam of the former districts of North Fremantle and East...

 since 1933. Tonkin served a long career in parliament, going to become Premier of Western Australia

Premier of Western Australia

The Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. The Premier has similar functions in Western Australia to those performed by the Prime Minister of Australia at the national level, subject to the different Constitutions...

 from 1971 to 1974. When Tonkin finally retired at the 1977 state election

Western Australian state election, 1977

Elections were held in the state of Western Australia on 19 February 1977 to elect all 55 members to the Legislative Assembly and 17 members to the 32-seat Legislative Council...

, he was succeeded by fellow Labor candidate Barry Hodge. Hodge served four terms before his defeat at the hands of Liberal

Liberal Party of Australia

The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...

 candidate Doug Shave.

Melville was abolished ahead of the 1996 state election

Western Australian state election, 1996

Elections were held in the state of Western Australia on 14 December 1996 to elect all 57 members to the Legislative Assembly and all 34 members to the Legislative Council...

. Shave went on to become the member for the new seat of Alfred Cove

Electoral district of Alfred Cove

The Electoral district of Alfred Cove is a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Western Australia. The district is named for the southern riverside Perth suburb of Alfred Cove which falls within its borders.-History:...

.

Members for Melville

Member		Party	Term
	John Tonkin John Tonkin John Trezise Tonkin AC , popularly known as "Honest John", was the 20th Premier of Western Australia , taking power after the almost 12 year term of Liberal Sir David Brand....	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	1950–1977
	Barry Hodge	Labor	1977–1989
	Doug Shave	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...	1989–1996