Western Australian secession referendum, 1933
Encyclopedia
A referendum was held on 8 April 1933 in the Australian state of Western Australia
on the topic of withdrawing from the Federal Commonwealth. The proposal was accepted and a petition was sent to London
where a Joint Select Committee of the British Parliament ruled it invalid because it had come from a State not the Commonwealth.
Voting was compulsory and the result on the first question was 138,653 in favour and 70,706 against. Question two was rejected by a vote of 119,031 against to 88,275 in favour. There were 237,198 registered voters. Only six of the fifty electoral districts recorded a No vote, and five of these were in the Goldfields and Kimberley regions.
victory in the simultaneous Western Australian state election, 1933
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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...
on the topic of withdrawing from the Federal Commonwealth. The proposal was accepted and a petition was sent to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
where a Joint Select Committee of the British Parliament ruled it invalid because it had come from a State not the Commonwealth.
Voting was compulsory and the result on the first question was 138,653 in favour and 70,706 against. Question two was rejected by a vote of 119,031 against to 88,275 in favour. There were 237,198 registered voters. Only six of the fifty electoral districts recorded a No vote, and five of these were in the Goldfields and Kimberley regions.
Question
- Question 1: Are you in favour of the State of Western Australia withdrawing from the Federal Commonwealth established under the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act (Imperial)?
- Question 2: Are you in favour of a Convention of Representatives of equal number from each of the Australian states being summoned for the purpose of proposing such alterations in the Constitution of the Commonwealth as may appear to such Convention to be necessary?
| Referendum Date | Outcome 1 | Outcome 2 |
|---|---|---|
| 8 April 1933 | Withdrawal ACCEPTED | Convention REJECTED |
| Question | YES | NO |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Western Australia withdrawal from Commonwealth of Australia | 138,653 | 70,706 |
| 2. Australian states' constitutional convention | 88,275 | 119,031 |
Aftermath
A joint Select Committee of the Westminster parliament decided not to act on the result as it did not have the support of the Australian federal government as required by the Statute of Westminster. Pressure for further action was reduced by the anti-secession LaborAustralian 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...
victory in the simultaneous Western Australian state election, 1933
Western Australian state election, 1933
Elections were held in the state of Western Australia on 8 April 1933 to elect all 50 members to the Legislative Assembly. The one-term Nationalist-Country coalition government, led by Premier Sir James Mitchell, was defeated by the Labor Party, led by Opposition Leader Philip Collier.The election...
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