Mayo by-election, 2008
Encyclopedia
A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives
seat of Mayo
on 6 September 2008, following the retirement of Liberal Party
MP
Alexander Downer
. The by-election
was held on the same day as the Lyne by-election
, and the Western Australian state election
.
The writ
for the by-election was issued 4 August, with the rolls closing on 8 August. Candidate nominations closed on 14 August. The by-election was contested on the same boundaries drawn for Mayo at the 2007 federal election. The seat was won by Jamie Briggs
of the Liberal Party
, despite a ten-percent reduction of his party's previous primary vote.
and independents have traditionally polled well, including two elections where the Democrats and independent Brian Deegan came second.
At the 2007 federal election, Downer retained his seat against his main Labor Party competitor by a two-party preferred margin of 57.06% to 42.94%. However, the opposition Labor Party defeated the incumbent Liberal-National coalition
government, the first change of government in over 11 years. Alexander Downer had served as Foreign Minister
throughout the duration of the previous government. He was also Liberal leader and leader of the opposition for several months in 1994.
On 3 July 2008, Downer announced his intention to resign his seat. He officially resigned from parliament on 14 July. He, with Mark Vaile
in Lyne
, became the next former Howard
government ministers returned at the 2007 election to resign their seats. Peter McGauran had done likewise earlier in 2008.
Labor opted not to stand a candidate.
, who had held membership of the Liberal Party for 20 years and was the endorsed Liberal candidate for Makin
in 2007, quit the party after failing to win Mayo preselection by 10 out of 271 votes, citing a "manipulated" preselection process. Iain Evans
, who came second to Briggs, agreed to some extent.
.
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
seat of Mayo
Division of Mayo
The Division of Mayo is an Australian Electoral Division located in the hills, east of Adelaide, South Australia and currently includes the towns of Victor Harbor, Lobethal, Mount Barker, Strathalbyn, Woodside and Kingscote....
on 6 September 2008, following the retirement of Liberal Party
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...
MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Alexander Downer
Alexander Downer
Alexander John Gosse Downer is a former Australian Liberal Party politician who was Foreign Minister of Australia from March 1996 to December 2007, the longest-serving in Australian history...
. The by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
was held on the same day as the Lyne by-election
Lyne by-election, 2008
A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Lyne on 6 September 2008. This was triggered by the resignation of National Party MP Mark Vaile. The by-election was held on the same day as the Mayo by-election, and the Western Australian state election.The writ for the...
, and the Western Australian state election
Western Australian state election, 2008
A general election was held in the state of Western Australia on Saturday 6 September 2008 to elect 59 members to the Legislative Assembly and 36 members to the Legislative Council...
.
The writ
Writ of election
A writ of election is a writ issued by the government ordering the holding of a special election for a political office.In the United Kingdom and in Canada, this is the only way of holding an election for the House of Commons...
for the by-election was issued 4 August, with the rolls closing on 8 August. Candidate nominations closed on 14 August. The by-election was contested on the same boundaries drawn for Mayo at the 2007 federal election. The seat was won by Jamie Briggs
Jamie Briggs
Jamie Edward Briggs MP is an Australian politician. He has been the Liberal Party of Australia member for the Division of Mayo since the 2008 Mayo by-election....
of the Liberal Party
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...
, despite a ten-percent reduction of his party's previous primary vote.
Background
Downer first won the seat of Mayo at its creation at the 1984 federal election. He retained the seat at each subsequent election. The 2007 Labor-Liberal two-party-preferred margin was the narrowest in the seat's history. Except for 1998, the seat has been won at each election by the Liberals on primary votes alone. Despite this, the Australian DemocratsAustralian Democrats
The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader...
and independents have traditionally polled well, including two elections where the Democrats and independent Brian Deegan came second.
At the 2007 federal election, Downer retained his seat against his main Labor Party competitor by a two-party preferred margin of 57.06% to 42.94%. However, the opposition Labor Party defeated the incumbent Liberal-National coalition
Coalition (Australia)
The Coalition in Australian politics refers to a group of centre-right parties that has existed in the form of a coalition agreement since 1922...
government, the first change of government in over 11 years. Alexander Downer had served as Foreign Minister
Minister for Foreign Affairs (Australia)
In the Government of Australia, the Minister for Foreign Affairs is responsible for overseeing the international diplomacy section of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. In common with international practice, the office is often informally referred to as Foreign Minister...
throughout the duration of the previous government. He was also Liberal leader and leader of the opposition for several months in 1994.
On 3 July 2008, Downer announced his intention to resign his seat. He officially resigned from parliament on 14 July. He, with Mark Vaile
Mark Vaile
Mark Anthony James Vaile , Australian politician, is a former Deputy Prime Minister of Australia and former leader of the National Party of Australia.-Early life:...
in Lyne
Lyne by-election, 2008
A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Lyne on 6 September 2008. This was triggered by the resignation of National Party MP Mark Vaile. The by-election was held on the same day as the Mayo by-election, and the Western Australian state election.The writ for the...
, became the next former Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
government ministers returned at the 2007 election to resign their seats. Peter McGauran had done likewise earlier in 2008.
Candidates
Eleven candidates contested the by-election. They are listed below in ballot order.- Australian GreensAustralian GreensThe Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...
- Lynton Vonow, Adelaide Hills resident, school services officer.
- Conservatives for Climate and EnvironmentConservatives for Climate and EnvironmentEnvironmentalists for Nuclear Energy Australia is the Australian affiliate of Environmentalists for Nuclear Energy, a pro-nuclear power non-profit organisation claiming over 9,000 members in 60 countries...
- Rachael Barons.
- Independent - Bill Spragg, Adelaide Hills councillor and lecturer in information technology at TAFE SA, who had also contested Mayo in 2001.
- One Nation - Mathew Keizer, Adelaide Hills resident and domestic community support worker.
- Independent - Mary Brewerton, retired nurse, contested Mayo for Labor in 2007.
- Australian DemocratsAustralian DemocratsThe Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader...
- Andrew Castrique, Adelaide Hills resident, school laboratory technician.
- Liberal Party of AustraliaLiberal Party of AustraliaThe 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...
- Jamie BriggsJamie BriggsJamie Edward Briggs MP is an Australian politician. He has been the Liberal Party of Australia member for the Division of Mayo since the 2008 Mayo by-election....
, former HowardJohn HowardJohn Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
government advisor
- Independent - Malcolm Ronald King, retired.
- Family First PartyFamily First PartyThe Family First Party is a socially conservative minor political party in Australia. It has two members in the South Australian Legislative Council...
- Bob DayBob DayRobert John Day AO is a businessman in South Australia. A millionaire, he is a home builder and one of the founders of Home Australia...
, businessman and former Liberal Party member.
- Democratic Labor PartyDemocratic Labor PartyThe Democratic Labor Party is a political party in Australia that espouses social conservatism and opposes neo-liberalism. The first "DLP" Senator in decades, party vice-president John Madigan was elected to the Australian Senate with 2.3 percent of the primary vote in Victoria at the 2010 federal...
- David McCabe, clerk.
- Independent - Di BellDiane BellDiane Robin Bell is a pioneering Australian feminist anthropologist, author and activist, Professor Emerita of Anthropology at the George Washington University in Washington, D. C., Writer and Editor in Residence at Flinders University, South Australia and Visiting Professor School of Social...
, anthropologist and author. South Australian independent Senator Nick XenophonNick XenophonNicholas "Nick" Xenophon is a South Australian barrister, anti-gambling campaigner and politician. He attended Prince Alfred College, and studied law at the University of Adelaide, attaining his Bachelor of Laws in 1981. Xenophon established and became principal of his own law firm, Xenophon & Co....
gave support to Bell's campaign.
Labor opted not to stand a candidate.
Liberal preselection
The candidature of Liberal Jamie Briggs was criticised because of his role in controversial industrial-relations policies and reports that some Liberal Party colleagues were unhappy with his preselection. Bob DayBob Day
Robert John Day AO is a businessman in South Australia. A millionaire, he is a home builder and one of the founders of Home Australia...
, who had held membership of the Liberal Party for 20 years and was the endorsed Liberal candidate for Makin
Division of Makin
The Division of Makin is an electoral division for the Australian House of Representatives located in the northeastern suburbs of Adelaide. Established in 1984 and named after Norman Makin, a former MP and diplomat, it has been a marginal seat at most elections since...
in 2007, quit the party after failing to win Mayo preselection by 10 out of 271 votes, citing a "manipulated" preselection process. Iain Evans
Iain Evans
Iain Frederick Evans is a South Australian Liberal Party politician. He studied at Heathfield High School and gained a Bachelor Degree for Building Technology from the SA Institute of Technology . Prior to entering politics he managed a family-owned building and retailing business...
, who came second to Briggs, agreed to some extent.
Results
The Liberal Party retained the seat, despite the seat becoming marginal, suffering a primary and two-candidate swing. Some commentators drew comparisons between this and the 2002 Cunningham by-electionCunningham by-election, 2002
The 2002 Cunningham by-election was held in the Australian electorate of Cunningham in New South Wales on 19 October 2002. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of the sitting member, the Australian Labor Party's Stephen Martin on 16 August 2002...
.