1944 South Australian state election

1944 South Australian state election

29 April 1944 (1944-04-29)
All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly 20 seats were needed for a majority
First party Second party   Leader Thomas Playford Robert Richards Party Liberal and Country League Labor Leader since 5 November 1938 1 April 1938 Leader's seat Gumeracha Wallaroo Last election 20 seats 11 seats Seats won 20 seats 16 seats Seat change 0 5 Percentage 46.7% 53.3%
Premier before election Thomas Playford Liberal and Country League Elected Premier Thomas Playford Liberal and Country League

State elections were held in South Australia on 29 April 1944. All 39 seats in the South Australian House of Assembly were up for election. The incumbent Liberal and Country League government led by Premier of South Australia Thomas Playford IV defeated the opposition Australian Labor Party led by Leader of the Opposition Robert Richards.

Background

Labor won an additional five seats totaling 16 seats − the highest number of seats won by Labor from the 1933 election through to the 1959 election, an effort not even outdone at the 1953 election where Labor won 53 percent of the statewide two-party vote but the LCL retained government with the assistance of the Playmander − an electoral malapportionment that also saw a clear majority of the statewide two-party vote won by Labor while failing to form government in 1953, 1962 and 1968.

The election was the first where the two-party vote had been retrospectively calculated. Unusually a wartime opposition won a clear majority of the two-party vote.

Turnout crashed to 50 percent at the 1941 election, triggering the government to institute compulsory voting from this election.

The Communist Party of Australia in South Australia recorded their highest vote at this election − 19.4 percent (2,500 votes) for candidate Alf Watt in the seat of Adelaide. The party contested one other seat at the election, Prospect, on 15.7 percent. The party only contested a select few seats at each election, the first at the 1930 election and the last at the 1977 election.

Results

South Australian state election, 29 April 1944 House of Assembly << 1941–1947 >>
Enrolled voters		289,032
Votes cast		255,883		Turnout	88.53%	+37.84%
Informal votes		8,229		Informal	3.22%	+1.26%
Summary of votes by party
Party		Primary votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
	Liberal and Country	113,536	45.84%	+8.29%	20	± 0
	Labor	105,298	42.52%	+9.27%	16	+ 5
	Communist	5,136	2.07%	*	0	± 0
	Independent	16,439	6.64%	–17.97%	3	– 2
	Independent Labor	5,587	2.26%	–0.76%	0	– 2
	Independent Liberal	1,658	0.67%	–0.91%	0	– 1
Total		247,654			39
Two-party-preferred
	Liberal and Country		46.70%	*
	Labor		53.30%	*

• The primary vote figures were from contested seats, while the state-wide two-party-preferred vote figures were estimated from all seats.

See also

• Results of the South Australian state election, 1944 (House of Assembly)
• Candidates of the 1944 South Australian state election
• Members of the South Australian House of Assembly, 1944-1947
• Members of the South Australian Legislative Council, 1944–1947
• Playmander

References

• History of South Australian elections 1857-2006, volume 1: ECSA
• State and federal election results Archived 18 January 2015 at the Wayback Machine in Australia since 1890
• The ‘Playmander’, Its origins, operation and effect on South Australia

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