The Nationals South Australia
Encyclopedia
The Nationals SA are a sub-division of the National Party of Australia
. First contesting the 1965 state election
, the party has only held two seats at alternating periods; Peter Blacker
(1973-1993) in Flinders
and Karlene Maywald
(1997-2010) in Chaffey
.
(the predecessor to the South Australian Liberal Party of Australia
) descended from a historical merger from an earlier Country Party, the SA Nationals are not as dominant in rural areas as their eastern state counterparts. Karlene Maywald
has been the MP for Chaffey
since 1997 and The National SA's parliamentary leader. She was re-elected at the 2002 and 2006 state elections (three other candidates were fielded in Flinders
, Finniss
, and MacKillop
), announcing that she would support whichever party won government, which happened to be a landslide to the Australian Labor Party
. Maywald became a minister in the first term of the Rann government. and signed an agreement with Mike Rann
and the Australian Labor Party
for reserving the right to not vote with the government, whilst at the same time becoming the Minister for the River Murray amongst other portfolios to the benefit of her constituency. Positions accepted were Minister for the River Murray, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Small Business, and later Minister for Water Security. This informal ALP-NAT coalition (the first since 1935) caused uproar, with Christopher Pyne
calling for Maywald's expulsion from the Nationals and Patrick Secker
calling for a corruption enquiry in to the appointment - neither eventuated. The party did not run candidates at the 2010 federal election.
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...
. First contesting the 1965 state election
South Australian state election, 1965
State elections were held in Australia on 6 March 1965. All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Country League led by Premier of South Australia Thomas Playford IV, in power since 1938, was defeated by the Australian Labor Party led by...
, the party has only held two seats at alternating periods; Peter Blacker
Peter Blacker
Peter Douglas Blacker is a former Australian politician who represented the seat of Flinders in the South Australian House of Assembly for the Nationals SA from 1973 to 1993. During that time he was the only Nationals member in the South Australian parliament. He is now the Chair of the Minister’s...
(1973-1993) in Flinders
Electoral district of Flinders
Flinders is an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia. It is named after explorer Matthew Flinders, who was responsible for charting most of the state's coastline. It is a 55,260.6 km² coastal rural electorate encompassing the Eyre Peninsula and...
and Karlene Maywald
Karlene Maywald
Karlene Ann Maywald is an Australian National Party politician who represented the seat of Chaffey in the South Australian House of Assembly from October 1997 until March 2010...
(1997-2010) in Chaffey
Electoral district of Chaffey
Chaffey, created in 1936, is an electorate for the South Australian House of Assembly. It covers the Riverland region of South Australia and is named after brothers George and William Chaffey who established the irrigation area along the Murray River from 1886...
.
History
As the Liberal and Country LeagueLiberal 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...
(the predecessor to the South Australian 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...
) descended from a historical merger from an earlier Country Party, the SA Nationals are not as dominant in rural areas as their eastern state counterparts. Karlene Maywald
Karlene Maywald
Karlene Ann Maywald is an Australian National Party politician who represented the seat of Chaffey in the South Australian House of Assembly from October 1997 until March 2010...
has been the MP for Chaffey
Electoral district of Chaffey
Chaffey, created in 1936, is an electorate for the South Australian House of Assembly. It covers the Riverland region of South Australia and is named after brothers George and William Chaffey who established the irrigation area along the Murray River from 1886...
since 1997 and The National SA's parliamentary leader. She was re-elected at the 2002 and 2006 state elections (three other candidates were fielded in Flinders
Electoral district of Flinders
Flinders is an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia. It is named after explorer Matthew Flinders, who was responsible for charting most of the state's coastline. It is a 55,260.6 km² coastal rural electorate encompassing the Eyre Peninsula and...
, Finniss
Electoral district of Finniss
Finniss is an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia. It is named after Boyle Finniss, the first Premier of South Australia...
, and MacKillop
Electoral district of MacKillop
MacKillop is an electoral district of the House of Assembly in the Australian state of South Australia. Named in 1991 after Mary MacKillop , who served the local area, it is a 24,358.3 km² rural electorate in the south-east of the state, stretching from the mouth of the Murray River...
), announcing that she would support whichever party won government, which happened to be a landslide to the 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...
. Maywald became a minister in the first term of the Rann government. and signed an agreement with 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...
and the 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...
for reserving the right to not vote with the government, whilst at the same time becoming the Minister for the River Murray amongst other portfolios to the benefit of her constituency. Positions accepted were Minister for the River Murray, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Small Business, and later Minister for Water Security. This informal ALP-NAT coalition (the first since 1935) caused uproar, with Christopher Pyne
Christopher Pyne
Christopher Maurice Pyne, MP , Australian politician, has been a Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives since 13 March 1993, representing the Division of Sturt, South Australia.-Early years:...
calling for Maywald's expulsion from the Nationals and Patrick Secker
Patrick Secker
Patrick Damien Secker , Australian politician, has been a Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives since October 1998, representing the Division of Barker, South Australia....
calling for a corruption enquiry in to the appointment - neither eventuated. The party did not run candidates at the 2010 federal election.