Electoral district of Bega

Bega New South Wales—Legislative Assembly
Location in New South Wales
State or territory:	New South Wales
Created:	1894, 1988
Abolished:	1920
MP:	Andrew Constance
Party:	Liberal Party of Australia
Electors:	49,932 (2011)
Area:	9,299 km² (3,590 sq mi)
Demographic:	Rural

Bega is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is represented by Andrew Constance of the Liberal Party.

The 2004 redistribution of electoral districts estimated that the electoral district would have 48,977 electors on 29 April 2007. At the 2007 election it will encompass almost all of Bega Valley Shire, including Bega, Tathra, Merimbula and Eden, but excluding Bemboka, and all of the Eurobodalla Shire, including Moruya, Batemans Bay and Narooma.

History

In 1894, single-member electorates were introduced state-wide and the two-member electorate of Eden was split into Bega and Eden-Bombala. In 1920, with the introduction of proportional representation, it was absorbed into Goulburn, along with Monaro. It was recreated in 1988. Bega has historically tended to be a safe conservative seat, however demographic change has led to the seat becoming increasingly marginal for the Liberal Party of Australia in recent decades.

Members for Bega

First incarnation (1894—1920)
Member		Party	Period
	Thomas Rawlinson	Independent Protectionist	1894—1895
	Henry Clarke	Independent Protectionist	1895—1898
		Protectionist	1898—1901
		Progressive	1901—1904
	William Wood	Liberal Reform	1904—1913
	William Millard	Liberal Reform	1913—1916
		Nationalist	1916—1920
Second incarnation (1988—present)
Member		Party	Period
	Russell Smith	Liberal	1988—2003
	Andrew Constance	Liberal	2003—present

Election results

Main article: Electoral results for the district of Bega

New South Wales state election, 2011: Bega
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Andrew Constance	26,122	59.0	+12.1
	Labor	Leanne Atkinson	9,749	22.0	-12.9
	Greens	Harriett Swift	5,358	12.1	+4.6
	Independent	Ivan McKay	2,341	5.3	+5.3
	Christian Democrats	Ursula Bennett	716	1.6	+0.0
Total formal votes			44,286	96.9	-1.0
Informal votes			1,426	3.1	+1.0
Turnout			45,712	92.0	-0.5
Two-candidate preferred result
	Liberal	Andrew Constance	27,369	68.6	+13.6
	Labor	Leanne Atkinson	12,505	31.4	-13.6
	Liberal hold		Swing	+13.6