Division of New England
| New England Australian House of Representatives Division |
|
|---|---|
 Division of New England (green) within New South Wales |
|
| Created: | 1901 |
| MP: | Tony Windsor |
| Party: | Independent |
| Namesake: | New England |
| Electors: | 99,616 (2010) |
| Area: | 59,344 km² (22,913 sq mi) |
| Demographic: | Rural |
The Division of New England is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of New South Wales. It is located in the north-east of the state, adjoining the border with Queensland. It includes such towns as Armidale, Ashford, Barraba, Bingara, Bundarra, Glen Innes, Gunnedah, Guyra, Inverell, Manilla, Quirindi, Tamworth, Uralla, Werris Creek, Walcha and Tenterfield. The Division covers a largely rural area, with agriculture the main industry.
The Division was proclaimed in 1900, and was one of the original 75 divisions to be contested at the first Federal election. It is named after the New England region in northern New South Wales. From 1922 to 2001, it was one of the safest seats in Australia for the National Party of Australia. However, since 2001, it has been represented by independent Tony Windsor.
The division's best-known member was Ian Sinclair, a long-serving Country/National Party minister and the leader of the National Party from 1984 to 1989.
The current sitting member, Tony Windsor, announced on 5 February 2013 that he would be recontesting the seat as an independent at the 2013 election.[1] On 20 August 2012, it was announced that the independent state MP for the Northern Tablelands, Richard Torbay, had won pre-selection as the National Party candidate.[2] However, in a surprise move on 19 March 2013, the Nationals cancelled Torbay's pre-selection and asked him to resign from the National Party.[3] The following morning Torbay also resigned his seat in State Parliament.[4] On 13 April 2013, Senator Barnaby Joyce, Leader of the Nationals in the Senate, won pre-selection, becoming the replacement for Torbay.[5] The Australian Labor Party candidate as yet to be announced. Also contesting the seat will be Jamie McIntyre, a financial entrepreneur and motivational speaker for the 21st Century Australia Party.[6]
Contents |
Members [edit]
| Member | Party | Term | |
|---|---|---|---|
| William Sawers | Protectionist | 1901–1903 | |
| Edmund Lonsdale | Free Trade | 1903–1906 | |
| Francis Foster | Labor | 1906–1913 | |
| Percy Abbott | Commonwealth Liberal | 1913–1917 | |
| Nationalist | 1917–1919 | ||
| Alexander Hay | Nationalist | 1919–1920 | |
| Country | 1920–1922 | ||
| Independent | 1922–1922 | ||
| Victor Thompson | Country | 1922–1940 | |
| Joe Abbott | Country | 1940–1949 | |
| David Drummond | Country | 1949–1963 | |
| Ian Sinclair | Country | 1963–1975 | |
| National Country | 1975–1982 | ||
| National | 1982–1998 | ||
| Stuart St. Clair | National | 1998–2001 | |
| Tony Windsor | Independent | 2001–present | |
Election results [edit]
| Australian federal election, 2010: New England | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Independent | Tony Windsor | 56,415 | 61.88 | +5.13 | |
| National | Tim Coates | 22,991 | 25.22 | -0.32 | |
| Labor | Greg Smith | 7,414 | 8.13 | -2.77 | |
| Greens | Pat Schultz | 3,252 | 3.57 | +0.26 | |
| One Nation | Brian Dettmann | 794 | 0.87 | -0.29 | |
| CEC | Richard Witten | 306 | 0.34 | +0.08 | |
| Total formal votes | 91,172 | 96.46 | -0.57 | ||
| Informal votes | 3,347 | 3.54 | +0.57 | ||
| Turnout | 94,519 | 94.83 | -1.27 | ||
| Two-candidate-preferred result | |||||
| Independent | Tony Windsor | 65,203 | 71.52 | -2.89 | |
| National | Tim Coates | 25,969 | 28.48 | +2.89 | |
| Independent hold | Swing | -2.89 | |||
References [edit]
- ^ "Windsor confirms he'll run for re-election". ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation). 6 February 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
- ^ "Torbay preselected for New England". The Land (Fairfax Media). 20 August 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
- ^ Shields, Bevan; Sheridan, Haley; Robertson, James (19 March 2013). "Torbay dumped by Nationals; Joyce eyes a run". The Sydney Morning Herald (Fairfax Media). Retrieved 14 April 2013.
- ^ Nicholls, Sean (20 March 2013). "Torbay resigns from state parliament". The Sydney Morning Herald (Fairfax Media). Retrieved 14 April 2013.
- ^ Ireland, Judith; Collins, Sarah-Jane (14 April 2013). "Nationals pick Joyce to take on Windsor". The Sydney Morning Herald (Fairfax Media). Retrieved 14 April 2013.
- ^ "Jamie McIntyre to challenge Tony Windsor for seat of New England". 21st Century Australia Party. 2 April 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
