Premiers of South Australia - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Before the 1890s when there was no formal party system in South Australia

South Australia

South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...

, MPs tended to have historical liberal or conservative beliefs. The liberal

Liberalism

Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...

s dominated government from 1893 to 1905 with 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...

support, with the conservatives

Conservatism

Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...

mostly in opposition. Labor took government with the support of eight dissident liberals in 1905 when Labor gained more seats than the liberals. The rise of Labor saw non-Labor politics start to merge in to various party incarnations. The conservatives merged with the Liberal and Democratic Union

Liberal and Democratic Union

The Liberal and Democratic Union was a political party formed by early South Australian liberals, as opposed to the conservatives. It was formed in 1906 when liberal party structures were becoming more solid. Its leader, Archibald Peake, stressed that the LDU represented 'something not so sharply...

(formed in 1906) to become the Liberal Union

Liberal Union (Australia)

The Liberal Union was a political party resulting from a merger between the Liberal and Democratic Union and the conservatives in South Australia. It lasted from 1910 to 1922 when it became the Liberal Federation....

in 1910. Labor formed South Australia's first majority government

Majority government

A majority government is when the governing party has an absolute majority of seats in the legislature or parliament in a parliamentary system. This is as opposed to a minority government, where even the largest party wins only a plurality of seats and thus must constantly bargain for support from...

after winning the 1910 state election

South Australian state election, 1910

State elections were held in Australia on 2 April 1910. All 42 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Democratic Union government led by Premier of South Australia Archibald Peake was defeated by the Australian Labor Party led by John Verran....

, two weeks after federal Labor formed Australia's first majority government after winning the 1910 federal election

Australian federal election, 1910

Federal elections were held in Australia on 13 April 1910. All 75 seats in the House of Representatives, and 18 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election...

. No "Country" or rural conservative parties emerged as serious long-term forces in South Australian state politics, often folding in to the non-Labor party.

List of Premiers of South Australia

The first six Governors of South Australia

Governors of South Australia

The Governor of South Australia is the representative in the Australian state of South Australia of Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia. The Governor performs the same constitutional and ceremonial functions at the state level as does the Governor-General of Australia at the national level.In...

oversaw governance from proclamation in 1836 until responsible government

Responsible government

Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability which is the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy...

was introduced in 1856.

No.	Name	Party	Assumed office	Left office	Period	Picture
1	B.T. Finniss		24 October 1856	21 August 1857
2	John Baker John Baker (Australian politician) John Baker was an early South Australian pastoralist and politician. He was the second Premier of South Australia, succeeding Boyle Finniss; however, he only held office for 12 days from 21 August to 1 September 1857 before being succeeded by the third Premier of the colony, Robert Torrens.-Early...		21 August 1857	1 September 1857
3	Robert Torrens Robert Torrens Sir Robert Richard Torrens, GCMG was the third Premier of South Australia and a pioneer and author of simplified system of transferring land.-Early life:...		1 September 1857
4	Richard Hanson Richard Hanson (Australian politician) Sir Richard Davies Hanson , was the fourth Premier of South Australia, from 30 September 1857 until 8 May 1860, and was a Chief Judge from 20 November 1861 until 4 March 1876 on the Supreme Court of South Australia, which is the highest ranking court in the Australian State of South...			9 May 1860
5	Thomas Reynolds		9 May 1860	8 October 1861
6	George Waterhouse		8 October 1861	4 July 1863
7	Francis Dutton Francis Dutton Francis Stacker Dutton CMG was the seventh Premier of South Australia, serving twice, firstly in 1863 and again in 1865....		4 July 1863	15 July 1863
8	Henry Ayers Henry Ayers Sir Henry Ayers GCMG was Premier of South Australia five times between 1863 and 1873, but is perhaps best remembered for having Uluru/Ayers Rock named for him.- Overview :...		15 July 1863	4 August 1864
9	Arthur Blyth Arthur Blyth Sir Arthur Blyth KCMG was premier of South Australia three times; 1864–1865, 1871–1872 and 1873-1875....		4 August 1864	22 March 1865
-	Francis Dutton (2nd time)		22 March 1865	20 September 1865	Total - 193 days
-	Henry Ayers (2nd time)		20 September 1865	23 October 1865
10	John Hart		23 October 1865	28 March 1866
11	James Boucaut James Boucaut Sir James Penn Boucaut KCMG was an Australian judge and politician, Premier of South Australia three times: 1866–1867, 1875–1876 and 1877–1878.-Early life:...		28 March 1866	3 May 1867
-	Henry Ayers (3rd time)		3 May 1867	24 September 1868	Total - 2 years, 197 days
-	John Hart (2nd time)		24 September 1868	13 October 1868	Total - 175 days
-	Henry Ayers (4th time)		13 October 1868	3 November 1868
12	Henry Strangways Henry Strangways Henry Bull Templar Strangways was an Australian politician and Premier of South Australia.Strangways was the eldest son of Henry Bull Strangways of Shapwick, Somerset, England. He visited South Australia as a boy. Returning to England he entered at the Middle Temple in November 1851 and was called...		3 November 1868	30 May 1870
-	John Hart (3rd time)		30 May 1870	10 November 1871	Total - 1 year, 339 days
-	Arthur Blyth (2nd time)		10 November 1871	22 January 1872	Total - 303 days
-	Henry Ayers (5th time)		22 January 1872	22 July 1873	Total - 4 years, 34 days
-	Arthur Blyth (3rd time)		22 July 1873	3 June 1875	Total - 2 years, 254 days
-	James Boucaut (2nd time)		3 June 1875	6 June 1876	Total - 2 years, 39 days
13	John Colton John Colton Sir John Colton KCMG was an Australian politician, Premier of South Australia and philanthropist.Colton, the son of William Colton, a farmer, was born in Devonshire, England. He arrived in South Australia in 1839 with his parents, who went on the land...		6 June 1876	26 October 1877
-	James Boucaut (3rd time)		26 October 1877	27 September 1878	Total - 3 years, 10 days
14	William Morgan William Morgan (Australian politician) Sir William Morgan KCMG was the Premier of South Australia between 1878 and 1881.-Early life:William Morgan was born in Bedfordshire, England, the son of George Morgan, a farmer, and his wife Sarah, née Horne. He emigrated to South Australia, arriving in Port Adelaide on 13 February 1849 in the...		27 September 1878	24 June 1881
15	John Cox Bray John Cox Bray Sir John Cox Bray KCMG JP was a prominent South Australian politician and the first native-born Premier of South Australia .-Early life:...		24 June 1881	16 June 1884
-	John Colton (2nd time)		16 June 1884	16 June 1885	Total - 2 years, 142 days
16	John Downer John Downer Sir John William Downer, KCMG was the Premier of South Australia from 16 June 1885 until 11 June 1887 and again from 1892 to 1893. He was the first of three Australian politicians from the Downer family dynasty.-Early life:...		16 June 1885	11 June 1887
17	Thomas Playford II Thomas Playford II Thomas Playford served as Premier of South Australia from 11 June 1887 to 26 June 1889 and 8 August 1890 to 20 June 1892, as well as serving as the Australian Federal Minister for Defence from 1905 to 1907....		11 June 1887	27 June 1889
18	John Cockburn John Cockburn (Australian politician) Sir John Alexander Cockburn, KCMG was Premier of South Australia from 27 June 1889 until 18 August 1890.Cockburn was born in Corsbie, Berwickshire, Scotland in 1850. His father was Thomas Cockburn. He was educated at Highgate School, and King's College London, he obtained the degree of M.D....		27 June 1889	19 August 1890
-	Thomas Playford II (2nd time)		19 August 1890	21 June 1892	Total - 3 years, 323 days
19	Frederick Holder Frederick Holder Sir Frederick William Holder KCMG was the 19th Premier of South Australia and a prominent member of the inaugural Australian Commonwealth Parliament, including the first Speaker of the House of Representatives.-Life:...		21 June 1892	15 October 1892
-	John Downer (2nd time)	conservatism Conservatism Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...	15 October 1892	16 June 1893	Total - 2 year, 239 days
20	Charles Kingston	liberalism Liberalism Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...	16 June 1893	1 December 1899
21	Vaiben Solomon Vaiben Solomon Vaiben Louis Solomon was the 21st Premier of South Australia and a member of the first Australian Commonwealth parliament....	conservatism	1 December 1899	8 December 1899
-	Frederick Holder (2nd time)	liberalism	8 December 1899	15 May 1901	Total - 1 year, 274 days
22	John Jenkins John Jenkins (Australian politician) John Greeley Jenkins was an American-Australian politician and Premier of South Australia.Jenkins was the fourth son of Evan Jenkins and Mary Davis of South Wales, was born in Pennsylvania. He was educated at the Wyoming Seminary, Pa., and after working on his father's farm, became in 1872 a...	liberalism	15 May 1901	1 March 1905
23	Richard Butler Richard Butler (Australian politician) Sir Richard Butler was an Australian politician and Premier of South Australia.-Early life:Butler was born at Stadhampton, near Oxford, England, elder son of Richard Butler, pastoralist, and his wife Mary Eliza, née Sadler. The family emigrated to South Australia, arriving in Adelaide on 8 March...	conservatism	1 March 1905	26 July 1905
24	Thomas Price Thomas Price Thomas Price was a stonecutter, teacher, lay preacher, businessman, stonemason, clerk-of-works, union secretary, union president and politician...	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... (Labor)	26 July 1905	5 June 1909
25	Archibald Peake Archibald Peake Archibald Henry Peake was an Australian politician and the 25th Premier of South Australia, serving on three separate occasions in the 1910s.-Early life and career:...	Liberal and Democratic Union Liberal and Democratic Union The Liberal and Democratic Union was a political party formed by early South Australian liberals, as opposed to the conservatives. It was formed in 1906 when liberal party structures were becoming more solid. Its leader, Archibald Peake, stressed that the LDU represented 'something not so sharply...	5 June 1909	3 June 1910
26	John Verran John Verran John Verran was the 26th Premier of South Australia, serving from 1910 to 1912. The 1910 election saw the South Australian division of the Australian Labor Party form a majority government, the first time a party had done so in South Australia...	Labor	3 June 1910	17 February 1912
-	Archibald Peake (2nd time)	Liberal Union Liberal Union (Australia) The Liberal Union was a political party resulting from a merger between the Liberal and Democratic Union and the conservatives in South Australia. It lasted from 1910 to 1922 when it became the Liberal Federation....	17 February 1912	3 April 1915	Total - 4 years, 43 days
27	Crawford Vaughan Crawford Vaughan Crawford Vaughan , was Premier of South Australia between 3 April 1915 and 14 July 1917.Vaughan unsuccessfully campaigned for a seat in the Australian House of Representatives in 1901, and for the Australian Senate in 1903...	Labor	3 April 1915	14 July 1917
-	Archibald Peake (3rd time)	Liberal Union	14 July 1917	8 April 1920	Total - 6 years, 312 days
28	Henry Barwell Henry Barwell Sir Henry Newman Barwell KCMG was the 28th Premier of South Australia.Born in Adelaide, South Australia, Barwell was educated at St Peter's College and Adelaide University, graduating in law...	Liberal Union/ Liberal Federation Liberal Federation The Liberal Federation was a liberal conservative South Australian political party from 1922 to 1932. It stemmed from the Liberal Union's Henry Barwell. Richard Layton Butler was also premier during the party's time. It was a predecessor to the Liberal and Country League....	8 April 1920	16 April 1924
29	John Gunn John Gunn (Australian politician) John Gunn was the 29th Premier of South Australia.Gunn was born in Bendigo, Victoria, the second of nine children to a Scottish miner and his wife...	Labor	16 April 1924	28 August 1926
30	Lionel Hill Lionel Hill Lionel Laughton Hill was the thirtieth Premier of South Australia.Born in Adelaide, South Australia but raised on a farm near Maitland, Hill left school aged 12 to work on the South Australian government railways, where he first became involved in the labour movement...	Labor	28 August 1926	8 April 1927
31	Richard Layton Butler Richard Layton Butler Sir Richard Layton Butler KCMG was the 31st Premier of South Australia, serving two disjunct terms in office: from 1927 to 1930, and again from 1933 to 1938....	Liberal Federation	8 April 1927	17 April 1930
-	Lionel Hill (2nd time)	Labor	17 April 1930	13 February 1933	Total - 3 years, 160 days
32	Robert Richards	Labor	13 February 1933	18 April 1933
-	Richard Layton Butler (2nd time)	Liberal and Country League Liberal and Country League The Liberal and Country League was a major political party in South Australia throughout its forty year existence. Thirty-four years were spent in government, in part due to the electoral malapportionment known as the Playmander, introduced after coming to power.Created on 9 June 1932 as the... (LCL)	18 April 1933	5 November 1938	Total - 8 years, 210 days
33	Thomas Playford IV Thomas Playford IV Sir Thomas Playford, GCMG was a South Australian politician. He served continuously as Premier of South Australia from 5 November 1938 to 10 March 1965, the longest term of any elected government leader in the history of Australia. His tenure as premier was marked by a period of population and...	LCL	5 November 1938	10 March 1965
34	Frank Walsh Frank Walsh Francis Henry "Frank" Walsh was the 34th Premier of South Australia, serving from 10 March 1965 to 1 June 1967.-Early life:One of eight children, Walsh was born into an Irish Catholic family in O'Halloran Hill, South Australia...	Labor	10 March 1965	1 June 1967
35	Don Dunstan Don Dunstan Donald Allan "Don" Dunstan, AC, QC was a South Australian politician. He entered politics as the Member for Norwood in 1953, became state Labor leader in 1967, and was Premier of South Australia between June 1967 and April 1968, and again between June 1970 and February 1979.The son of a business...	Labor	1 June 1967	17 April 1968
36	Steele Hall Steele Hall Raymond Steele Hall was the 36th Premier of South Australia 1968-70, a senator for South Australia 1974-77, and federal member for the Division of Boothby 1981-96.-Biography:...	LCL	17 April 1968	2 June 1970
-	Don Dunstan (2nd time)	Labor	2 June 1970	15 February 1979	Total - 9 years, 214 days
37	Des Corcoran Des Corcoran James Desmond "Des" Corcoran AO was an Australian politician. He was the 37th Premier of South Australia, serving between 15 February 1979 and 18 September 1979....	Labor	15 February 1979	18 September 1979
38	David Tonkin David Tonkin Dr David Oliver Tonkin AO was the 38th Premier of South Australia, serving from 18 September 1979 to 10 November 1982. He was elected to the House of Assembly seat of Bragg at the 1970 election, serving until 1983. He became the leader of the South Australian division of the Liberal Party of...	Liberal Party of Australia 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... (Liberal)	18 September 1979	10 November 1982
39	John Bannon John Bannon John Charles Bannon AO is a former Australian politician. He was the 39th Premier of South Australia, leading the Labor Party to government at the 1982 election. The Bannon Labor government was re-elected at the 1985 election and the 1989 election...	Labor	10 November 1982	4 September 1992
40	Lynn Arnold Lynn Arnold Lynn Maurice Ferguson Arnold, AO , former Australian politician, was the Labor Premier of South Australia between 4 September 1992 and 14 December 1993....	Labor	4 September 1992	14 December 1993
41	Dean Brown Dean Brown Dean Craig Brown, AO was the Liberal Premier of South Australia between 14 December 1993 and 28 November 1996, and Deputy Premier of South Australia between 22 October 2001 and 5 March 2002 to Rob Kerin.-Political career:...	Liberal	14 December 1993	28 November 1996
42	John Olsen John Olsen John Wayne Olsen, AO was Premier of South Australia between 28 November 1996 and 22 October 2001.-Parliament:Olsen was a member of the Liberal Party and Member of Parliament for more than 20 years...	Liberal	28 November 1996	22 October 2001
43	Rob Kerin Rob Kerin Robert Gerard Kerin was the Liberal Premier of South Australia from 22 October 2001 to 5 March 2002. He also served as Deputy Premier of South Australia to John Olsen from 7 July 1998 until he became premier upon Olsen's resignation....	Liberal	22 October 2001	5 March 2002
44	Mike Rann Mike Rann Michael David Rann MHA, CNZM , Australian politician, served as the 44th Premier of South Australia. He led the South Australian branch of the Australian Labor Party to minority government at the 2002 election, before attaining a landslide win at the 2006 election...	Labor	5 March 2002	21 October 2011
45	Jay Weatherill Jay Weatherill Jay Wilson Weatherill is an Australian politician and current Premier of South Australia. He has represented the electoral district of Cheltenham in the South Australian House of Assembly as a member of the Australian Labor Party since the 2002 election.-Early life:Born in the western suburbs of...	Labor	21 October 2011	Incumbent

Living former premiers

There are seven living former premiers, the oldest being Steele Hall

Steele Hall

Raymond Steele Hall was the 36th Premier of South Australia 1968-70, a senator for South Australia 1974-77, and federal member for the Division of Boothby 1981-96.-Biography:...

(1968–70, born 1928). The most recent death, on 3 January 2004, was that of Des Corcoran

Des Corcoran

James Desmond "Des" Corcoran AO was an Australian politician. He was the 37th Premier of South Australia, serving between 15 February 1979 and 18 September 1979....

(Premier Feb–Sept 1979), and the most recently-serving premier to die was Dr David Tonkin

David Tonkin

Dr David Oliver Tonkin AO was the 38th Premier of South Australia, serving from 18 September 1979 to 10 November 1982. He was elected to the House of Assembly seat of Bragg at the 1970 election, serving until 1983. He became the leader of the South Australian division of the Liberal Party of...

(1979–1982), on 2 October 2000.

Name	Term as premier	Date of birth
Steele Hall Steele Hall Raymond Steele Hall was the 36th Premier of South Australia 1968-70, a senator for South Australia 1974-77, and federal member for the Division of Boothby 1981-96.-Biography:...	1968–1970	28 November 1928 (age 83)
John Bannon John Bannon John Charles Bannon AO is a former Australian politician. He was the 39th Premier of South Australia, leading the Labor Party to government at the 1982 election. The Bannon Labor government was re-elected at the 1985 election and the 1989 election...	1982–1992	7 May 1943 (age 68)
Lynn Arnold Lynn Arnold Lynn Maurice Ferguson Arnold, AO , former Australian politician, was the Labor Premier of South Australia between 4 September 1992 and 14 December 1993....	1992–1993	27 January 1949 (age 63)
Dean Brown Dean Brown Dean Craig Brown, AO was the Liberal Premier of South Australia between 14 December 1993 and 28 November 1996, and Deputy Premier of South Australia between 22 October 2001 and 5 March 2002 to Rob Kerin.-Political career:...	1993–1996	5 April 1943 (age 68)
John Olsen John Olsen John Wayne Olsen, AO was Premier of South Australia between 28 November 1996 and 22 October 2001.-Parliament:Olsen was a member of the Liberal Party and Member of Parliament for more than 20 years...	1996–2001	7 June 1945 (age 66)
Rob Kerin Rob Kerin Robert Gerard Kerin was the Liberal Premier of South Australia from 22 October 2001 to 5 March 2002. He also served as Deputy Premier of South Australia to John Olsen from 7 July 1998 until he became premier upon Olsen's resignation....	2001–2002	4 January 1954 (age 58)
Mike Rann Mike Rann Michael David Rann MHA, CNZM , Australian politician, served as the 44th Premier of South Australia. He led the South Australian branch of the Australian Labor Party to minority government at the 2002 election, before attaining a landslide win at the 2006 election...	2002–2011	5 January 1953 (age 59)

Graphical timeline

In the following timeline, the legend includes the Liberal and Democratic Union, the Liberal Union and the Liberal Federation represented as "Liberal (pre-1979)". The Liberal Party of Australia

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...

is represented as "Liberal (post-1979)" only. The grey area represents the duration of Playmander

Playmander

The Playmander was a form of electoral malapportionment in the Australian state of South Australia, in place from 1936 to 1968. It consisted of rural districts enjoying a 2-to-1 advantage in the state parliament, even though they contained less than half of the population, as well as a change from...

electoral malapportionment

Apportionment (politics)

Apportionment is the process of allocating political power among a set of principles . In most representative governments, political power has most recently been apportioned among constituencies based on population, but there is a long history of different approaches.The United States Constitution,...

, beginning in 1936, in effect until the 1970 election

South Australian state election, 1970

State elections were held in Australia on 30 May 1970. All 47 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Country League led by Premier of South Australia Steele Hall was defeated by the Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the Opposition Don...

External links

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List of Premiers of South Australia

Living former premiers

Graphical timeline

See also

External links