1986 Bass Hill state by-election
A by-election was held for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Bass Hill on 2 August 1986. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of sitting Labor MP Neville Wran.[1] It was won by Liberal candidate Michael Owen.[2]
The Bass Hill by-election was held the same day as the Rockdale by-election.
Background
Neville Wran resigned as Premier of New South Wales after more than 10 years in office. At the time, Wran held the record for the longest uninterrupted stint as NSW Premier. In addition to resigning as Premier, Wran also resigned his seat in the Legislative Assembly, necessitating a by-election to fill the vacancy.
Result
Bass Hill was lost by the Labor Party for the only time in the history of the district. In a very close result, Liberal Party candidate Michael Owen won the contest by 103 votes after the distribution of preferences.[2]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labor | Bill Lovelee | 10,899 | 41.96 | −22.17 | |
Liberal | Michael Owen | 8,646 | 33.28 | +3.92 | |
Independent | Jill Barber | 3,209 | 12.35 | +12.35 | |
Democrats | Peter Carver | 1,391 | 5.35 | +5.35 | |
Call to Australia | Elaine Nile | 1,387 | 5.34 | +5.34 | |
Independent | Richard Mezinec | 329 | 1.27 | +1.27 | |
Pan Ethnic Republican | John Vartanian | 115 | 0.44 | +0.44 | |
Total formal votes | 25,976 | 96.23 | +0.15 | ||
Informal votes | 1,019 | 3.77 | −0.15 | ||
Turnout | 26,995 | 80.76 | −13.91 | ||
Two-party-preferred result | |||||
Liberal | Michael Owen | 12,260 | 50.21 | +17.5* | |
Labor | Bill Lovelee | 12,157 | 49.79 | −17.5 * | |
Liberal gain from Labor | Swing | +17.5[a] |
See also
Notes
- ^ Since the two-party preferred count was not conducted for Bass Hill in 1984,[3] the two party preferred swing at the by-election cannot be calculated precisely. ABC election analyst Antony Green estimates a two party preferred swing of 17.5% towards the Liberal Party.[4]
References
- ^ "The Hon. Neville Kenneth Wran (1926–2014)". Former members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
- ^ a b c Green, Antony. "Bass Hill 1986 by-election". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
- ^ Green, Antony. "1984 Bass Hill". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
- ^ "Election Background". www.abc.net.au. Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC). Retrieved 25 June 2020.