New South Wales state election, 1944

The 1944 New South Wales state election was held on 27 May 1944. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting

Instant-runoff voting

Instant-runoff voting , also known as preferential voting, the alternative vote and ranked choice voting, is a voting system used to elect one winner. Voters rank candidates in order of preference, and their ballots are counted as one vote for their first choice candidate. If a candidate secures a...

and was held on boundaries created at a 1940 redistribution. The election was for all of the 90 seats in the Legislative Assembly

New South Wales Legislative Assembly

The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The other chamber is the Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney...

Issues

The Labor government of William McKell

William McKell

Sir William John McKell GCMG , Australian politician, was Premier of New South Wales from 1941 to 1947, and was the 12th Governor-General of Australia. He was also the oldest Governor General of Australia, at 93 when he died....

faced its first challenge at a general election in May 1944. The campaign was overshadowed by the course of the Second World War and the Sydney Morning Herald noted that in such an uncertain environment it was difficult for any party to make extensive plans for the future. This was particularly the case as many of the responsibilities of the states had been usurped by the Commonwealth Government as emergency war powers.

McKell's 3 years in government had enhanced his reputation as a moderate and cautious leader. Under his leadership the extreme left wing of the party had been expelled and had contested the 1941

New South Wales state election, 1941

The 1941 New South Wales state election was held on 10 May 1941. This election was for all of the 90 seats in the 33nd New South Wales Legislative Assembly and was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting....

as the State Labor Party

State Labor Party

The State Labor Party , was an Australian political party which operated exclusively in the state of New South Wales in the early 1940s. The party was initially a far-left faction of the Australian Labor Party, strongly opposed to the right-wing faction of the party dominated by Jack Lang, former...

. Its poor showing had resulted in its dissolution shortly after the election and most members had joined the Communist Party of Australia

Communist Party of Australia

The Communist Party of Australia was founded in 1920 and dissolved in 1991; it was succeeded by the Socialist Party of Australia, which then renamed itself, becoming the current Communist Party of Australia. The CPA achieved its greatest political strength in the 1940s and faced an attempted...

. However, Labor unity was again threatened by Jack Lang

Jack Lang (Australian politician)

John Thomas Lang , usually referred to as J.T. Lang during his career, and familiarly known as "Jack" and nicknamed "The Big Fella" was an Australian politician who was Premier of New South Wales for two terms...

who had been expelled from the Labor Party in 1943 and had formed another version of the Lang Labor

Lang Labor

Lang Labor was the name commonly used to describe three successive break-away sections of the Australian Labor Party, all led by the New South Wales Labor leader Jack Lang premier of NSW .-Initial opposition to Lang's leadership:...

Party. On this occasion he received no support from the rest of the caucus and spent the rest of the term as the sole member.

In comparison to the Labor Party, the urban conservative political forces were in complete disarray. The very poor results of the United Australia Party

United Australia Party

The United Australia Party was an Australian political party that was founded in 1931 and dissolved in 1945. It was the political successor to the Nationalist Party of Australia and predecessor to the Liberal Party of Australia...

(UAP) under Billy Hughes

Billy Hughes

William Morris "Billy" Hughes, CH, KC, MHR , Australian politician, was the seventh Prime Minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923....

at the 1943

Australian federal election, 1943

Federal elections were held in Australia on 21 August 1943. All 74 seats in the House of Representatives, and 19 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent Australian Labor Party led by Prime Minister of Australia John Curtin easily defeated the opposition Country Party led...

federal election had increased the divisions within the party and had resulted in its disintegration shortly after the election. By early 1944 the Democratic Party, which was a combination of the Commonwealth Party and the remnants of the UAP had emerged as the main conservative party in New South Wales. It was led by Reginald Weaver

Reginald Weaver

Reginald Walter Darcy Weaver was an Australian conservative parliamentarian who served in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for 28 years. Serving from 1917 in the backbenches, he entered the cabinet of Thomas Bavin in 1929 as Secretary for Mines and Minister for Forests until he returned to...

and had the support of most of the former UAP members of parliament. However the Liberal Democratic Party, which had been founded by the Sydney timber merchant and businessman Ernest K White (later Sir Ernest White), attracted significant media attention and had a large and expensive advertising campaign. White claimed that the UAP and Democratic Party had been overly concerned with infighting and were no longer able to give coherence to conservative political aspirations. His party while supporting an extension of the welfare safety-net called for an increased effort to win the war including the mandatory deregistration of unions involved in unreasonable strike action.. The Sydney Morning Herald commented that the Liberal Democratic Party was a mouse attempting to swallow the Democratic Party lion.

Results

There was little change in the composition of parliament with Labor again having a large majority. At the election Lang's party won 2 of the 23 seats in which it stood candidates. Its total primary vote of 9.33%, which significantly reduced Labor's primary vote but made little difference to the distribution of seats. The Liberal Democratic Party did not fulfill pre-election predictions and gained less than 4%of the vote with no seats. The final result was:

Australian 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...

56 seats
Lang Labor
Lang Labor
Lang Labor was the name commonly used to describe three successive break-away sections of the Australian Labor Party, all led by the New South Wales Labor leader Jack Lang premier of NSW .-Initial opposition to Lang's leadership:...

2 seats
Democratic Party 12 seats
Independent Democratic 4 seats
Country Party
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...

10 seats
Independent Country 1 seat
Independent 5 seats

Aftermath

McGirr remained premier until he was appointed Governor General in early 1947. Weaver became the inaugural leader 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...

when it was formed from the urban conservative parties in late 1944. Howeve, he died the next year and was succeeded by Vernon Treatt

Vernon Treatt

Sir Vernon Haddon Treatt KBE, MM, QC was an Australian lawyer, soldier, Rhodes Scholar and politician. Born in Singleton, New South Wales and educated at Shore School, Treatt interrupted his studies at the University of Sydney to enlist at the outbreak of the First World War...

. Michael Bruxner

Michael Bruxner

Lieutenant Colonel Sir Michael Frederick Bruxner KBE, DSO, JP was an Australian politician and soldier, serving for many years as Leader of the Country Party and its predecessors...

retained his leadership of the Country Party, which he had held since 1932, throughout the parliament.

There were 9 by-elections during the parliament but the overall composition of the parties stayed intact.

Seats changing party representation

This table lists changes in party representation since the 1941 election but does not include United Australia Party members who retained their seats as Democratic Party members

Seat	Incumbent member	New member	\|Party

Auburn‡	Jack Lang Jack Lang (Australian politician) John Thomas Lang , usually referred to as J.T. Lang during his career, and familiarly known as "Jack" and nicknamed "The Big Fella" was an Australian politician who was Premier of New South Wales for two terms...	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...	Jack Lang Jack Lang (Australian politician) John Thomas Lang , usually referred to as J.T. Lang during his career, and familiarly known as "Jack" and nicknamed "The Big Fella" was an Australian politician who was Premier of New South Wales for two terms...	Lang Labor Lang Labor Lang Labor was the name commonly used to describe three successive break-away sections of the Australian Labor Party, all led by the New South Wales Labor leader Jack Lang premier of NSW .-Initial opposition to Lang's leadership:...
Burwood Electoral district of Burwood (New South Wales) Burwood was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales, first created in 1894 with the abolition of multi-member electoral districts from part of Canterbury, and named after and including the Sydney suburb of Burwood. With the introduction of...	Gordon Jackett Gordon Jackett Harry Gordon Jackett was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1935 and 1938 and from 1941 until his death. He was variously a United Australia Party , Independent UAP, Democratic Party and Liberal Party member of parliament .Jackett was born in...	Independent UAP	Gordon Jackett Gordon Jackett Harry Gordon Jackett was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1935 and 1938 and from 1941 until his death. He was variously a United Australia Party , Independent UAP, Democratic Party and Liberal Party member of parliament .Jackett was born in...	Democratic
Dubbo Electoral district of Dubbo Dubbo is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is represented by Troy Grant of the National Party of Australia.... ¶		Country National Party of Australia The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...	Clarrie Robertson Clarrie Robertson Clarence Gordon Robertson was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly between 1942 and 1950 and again between 1953 and 1959. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party....	Labor
Lachlan Electoral district of Lachlan Lachlan was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. During the first two Parliaments , there was an electorate in the same area called Lachlan and Lower Darling, named after the Lachlan and Darling Rivers. Lachlan was created in 1859 and... †		Country	John Chanter John Courtenay Chanter For John Courtenay Chanter's father, John Moore Chanter, a member of the New South Wales and Australian parliaments see John ChanterJohn Courtenay Chanter was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly between 1943 and 1947...	Labor
Lane Cove Electoral district of Lane Cove Lane Cove is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is represented by Anthony Roberts of the Liberal Party of Australia...	Henry FitzSimons	UAP United Australia Party The United Australia Party was an Australian political party that was founded in 1931 and dissolved in 1945. It was the political successor to the Nationalist Party of Australia and predecessor to the Liberal Party of Australia...	Henry Woodward Henry Woodward (Australian politician) Henry Phipps John Woodward was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for a single term between 1944 and 1947. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party.-Early life:...	Labor
Manly Electoral district of Manly Manly is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It has historically tended to be a Liberal-leaning seat. It is currently represented by the Treasurer of New South Wales, Mike Baird of the Liberal Party of Australia.-Members for Manly:-Election...	Alfred Reid	UAP	Alfred Reid	Independent Democrat
Murrumbidgee Electoral district of Murrumbidgee Murrumbidgee is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales, named after the Murrumbidgee River. It is represented by Adrian Piccoli of the National Party of Australia....	George Enticknap George Enticknap The Hon. Ambrose George Enticknap was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1941 until 1965...	Independent Labor	George Enticknap George Enticknap The Hon. Ambrose George Enticknap was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1941 until 1965...	Labor
Nepean Electoral district of Nepean (New South Wales) Nepean was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales, originally created in 1859, and named after the Nepean River. It was abolished in 1904 with the downsizing of the Assembly after Federation. Nepean was recreated in 1927 and abolished again in...	Joseph Jackson Joseph Jackson (Australian politician) Joseph Jackson was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1922 until 1956...	UAP	Joseph Jackson Joseph Jackson (Australian politician) Joseph Jackson was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1922 until 1956...	Independent
Newtown Electoral district of Newtown Newtown was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales, originally created in 1859, and named after and including the Sydney suburb of Newtown. It elected one member from 1859 to 1880, two members from 1880 to 1885, three members from 1885 to 1891...	Frank Burke	Labor	Lillian Fowler	Lang Labor
Oxley	George Mitchell George Mitchell (Australian politician) George Deane Mitchell was an Australian politician and an Independent member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for a single term between 1941 and 1944. .-Early life:...	Independent	Les Jordan Les Jordan Leslie Charles Jordan was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1944 until his death in 1965 . He was initially elected as a member of the Country Party but changed allegiance to the Liberal Party of Australia in 1959.Jordan was born in Sydney...	Independent Country
Tamworth Electoral district of Tamworth Tamworth is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is represented by Kevin Anderson of the National Party of Australia...	Bill Chaffey Bill Chaffey William Adolphus Chaffey was an Australian farmer, soldier and member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for the district of Tamworth...	Independent UAP	Bill Chaffey Bill Chaffey William Adolphus Chaffey was an Australian farmer, soldier and member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for the district of Tamworth...	Independent

‡ Lang had been expelled from the Labor Party in 1943

¶ Labor won the seat of Dubbo from the Country Party at a 1942 by-election caused by the death of George Wilson

† Labor won the seat of Lachlan from the Country Party at a 1943 by-election caused by the death of Griffith Evans

Griffith Evans (politician)

Griffith Parry Evans was an Australian politician and a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1941 until his death. He was a member of the Country Party.-Early life:...

Key dates

Date	Event
24 April 1944	The Legislative Assembly was dissolved, and writs were issued by the Governor to proceed with an election.
28 April 1944	Nominations for candidates for the election closed at noon.
27 May 1944	Polling day.
22 June 1944	Last day for the writs to be returned and the results formally declared.
22 June 1944	Opening of 34th Parliament.

Tabulated Results

There were 1,433,166 enrolled voters in 74 contested electorates and 299,540 were enrolled in 16 uncontested electorates (13 Labor, 1 Democrat, 1 Country and 1 Independent).

Compared to United Australia Party