Western Australian state election, 1989
Encyclopedia
Elections were held in the state
of Western Australia
on 4 February 1989 to elect all 57 members to the Legislative Assembly
and all 34 members to the Legislative Council
. The Labor
government, led by Premier
Peter Dowding
, won a third term in office against the Liberal Party
, led by Opposition Leader
Barry MacKinnon.
The result was a major swing against the Labor Party, coming in the wake of revelations of dealings between Government and business that came to be known as WA Inc
. The redistribution that took place in 1988, based upon the Acts Amendment (Electoral Reform) Act 1987 which abolished several country and outer metropolitan electorates while creating new metropolitan ones, makes it difficult to assess how Labor would have performed on the old boundaries—while it lost four seats, it gained one Liberal-held seat and won several of the new seats, so in net terms, it only lost one seat despite the massive swing and the low two-party-preferred result.
States and territories of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a union of six states and various territories. The Australian mainland is made up of five states and three territories, with the sixth state of Tasmania being made up of islands. In addition there are six island territories, known as external territories, and a...
of Western Australia
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 4 February 1989 to elect all 57 members to the Legislative Assembly
Western Australian Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Perth....
and all 34 members to the Legislative Council
Western Australian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the Legislative Assembly. It sits in Parliament House in the state...
. The 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...
government, led by Premier
Premier of Western Australia
The Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. The Premier has similar functions in Western Australia to those performed by the Prime Minister of Australia at the national level, subject to the different Constitutions...
Peter Dowding
Peter Dowding
Peter McCallum Dowding SC was the 24th Premier of Western Australia, serving from 25 February 1988 until his resignation on 12 February 1990 after an internal party dispute....
, won a third term in office against 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...
, led by Opposition Leader
Leader of the Opposition (Western Australia)
The Leader of the Opposition in Western Australia is the leader of the largest minority political party or coalition of parties in the Legislative Assembly of the Parliament of Western Australia. By convention, he or she is generally a member of the Legislative Assembly...
Barry MacKinnon.
The result was a major swing against the Labor Party, coming in the wake of revelations of dealings between Government and business that came to be known as WA Inc
WA Inc
WA Inc was a political scandal in Western Australia. In the 1980s, the state government, which was led for much of the period by premier Brian Burke, engaged in business dealings with several prominent businessmen, including Alan Bond, Laurie Connell and Warren Anderson...
. The redistribution that took place in 1988, based upon the Acts Amendment (Electoral Reform) Act 1987 which abolished several country and outer metropolitan electorates while creating new metropolitan ones, makes it difficult to assess how Labor would have performed on the old boundaries—while it lost four seats, it gained one Liberal-held seat and won several of the new seats, so in net terms, it only lost one seat despite the massive swing and the low two-party-preferred result.
Legislative Assembly
|}Legislative Council
|}See also
- Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, 1986–1989Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, 1986–1989This is a list of members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1986 to 1989:-Notes:This is a list of members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1986 to 1989:-Notes:...
- Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, 1989–1993Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, 1989–1993This is a list of members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1989 to 1993:-Notes:This is a list of members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1989 to 1993:-Notes:...