1953 New South Wales state election

April 2022 State election for New South Wales, Australia in February 1953 June 2020 1953 New South Wales state election New South Wales parliamentary no 1950 New South Wales state election 1950 1956 New South Wales state election 1956 All 94 seats in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly48 Assembly seats were needed for a majority yes 1953 02 14 150x150px Joseph Cahill 2 April 1952 Australian Labor Party (New South Wales Branch) Cook's River 55.03% 8.3 46 seats 57 11 150x150px Vernon Treatt 20 March 1946 Liberal/Country coalition Woollahra 39.54% 6.9 46 seats 36 10 1953 New South Wales state election.svg 400px Two-candidate-preferred margin by electorate Premier Joseph Cahill Australian Labor Party (New South Wales Branch) Joseph Cahill Australian Labor Party (New South Wales Branch) The 1953 New South Wales state election was held on 14 February 1953. It was conducted in single member constituencies with compulsory preferential voting and was held on boundaries created at a 1952 redistribution.1952 redistribution The election was for all of the 94 seats in the Legislative Assembly. Issues In February 1953, the ALP had been in power for 12 years and James McGirr, who had led the party to a near defeat in 1950, had lost the premiership to Joe Cahill 10 months earlier. McGirr's period as the Labor leader had been marked by policy indecisiveness, budget overspending and internal conflict. Cahill, by contrast, had won popular support as a vigorous and impressive minister who had resolved problems with New South Wales' electricity supply. During his first 10 months as premier, he had reinvigorated the party. He appeared decisive and brought order to the government's chaotic public works program. In addition, he astutely attacked the increasingly unpopular federal Coalition government of Robert Menzies.McMullin Ross The Light on the Hill: The Australian Labor Party 1891-1991 Oxford University Press 1991 0-19-554966-X 266–7 By contrast, the Liberal Party and Country Party coalition led by Vernon Treatt and Michael Bruxner was racked with internal divisions. Treatt himself, despite having been opposition leader for seven years, remained little known to the public. Whereas in 1950 his coalition had achieved a big swing against the ALP, in 1953 he was unable to convince voters that he possessed a coherent alternative policy to the government. Key dates Date Event 14 January 1953 The Legislative Assembly was dissolved, and writs were issued by the Governor to proceed with an election. 19 January 1953 Nominations for candidates for the election closed at noon. 14 February 1953 Polling day. 23 February 1953 Second Cahill ministry sworn in 14 March 1953 Last day for the writs to be returned and the results formally declared. 11 March 1953 Opening of 37th Parliament. Results Results of the 1953 New South Wales state election The result of the election was a landslide victory for Labor. Labor's vote was particularly strong in the Western and Southern suburbs of Sydney. It won the seats of Concord, Coogee, Drummoyne, Kogarah, Parramatta, Ryde and Sutherland from the Liberal Party and picked up the new suburban seats of East Hills and Fairfield. Labor's vote was resurgent in rural New South Wales where it won the seats of Armidale, Dubbo and Mudgee from the Country party. Labor also picked up the seat of North Sydney from Independent member James Geraghty who was the last of the 4 Independent members of parliament who had been expelled from the Labor party for disloyalty during an indirect election of the Legislative Council in 1949. John Seiffert, another rebel from 1949 and the member for Monaro, had been readmitted to the party in 1950 and retained the seat at this election, giving a further boost to Labor's numbers. Labor's losses included Ashfield which had been won from the Liberal Party at the 1952 by-election and Hartley which was retained by Jim Chalmers who stood as an Independent Labor candidate after he resigned from the party over a pre-selection dispute. The Minister for Labour, Industry and Social Welfare, Frank Finnan was unseated when his electorate of Darlinghurst was abolished,1952 redistribution he lost a preselection contest for Concord,Truth 21 Dec 52 and he failed in an attempt to win Albury. {{Australian elections/Title row | table style = float:right;clear:right;margin-left:1em; | title = New South Wales state election, 14 February 1953 | house = Legislative Assembly | series = New South Wales state election | back = 1950 | forward = 1956 | enrolled = 1,953,953There were 1,692,231 enrolled voters in 81 contested electorates and 261,722 were enrolled in 13 uncontested electorates (9 Labor, 3 Liberal and 1 Country ).1953 election totals 1953 Totals 12 August 2019 | total_votes = 1,548,877 | turnout % = 93.86 | turnout chg = +1.11 | informal = 39,416 | informal % = 2.48 | informal chg = +0.71 }} yes Labor NSW 852,276 55.03 +8.28 57 +11 Liberal NSW 432,739 27.94 −9.57 22 −7 Country NSW 179,680 11.60 +2.63 14 −3 Independent 38,822 2.51 +0.20 0 − Communist 21,421 1.38 +0.54 0 − Independent Labor NSW 16,533 1.07 −0.58 1 − 1 Lang Labor 7,046 0.48 −0.74 0 − 1,588,293 94 |} Retiring members Candidates of the 1953 New South Wales state election Retiring Members yes Seats changing party representation Seat 1950 1953 Party Member Member Party Armidale   Country NSW Davis Hughes Jim Cahill Labor NSW   AshfieldAthol Richardson (Liberal NSW) held the seat at the 1950 election, however he was appointed to the Supreme Court and Jack Richardson (Labor NSW) won the seat at the 1952 by-election.1950 Ashfield_1 1952 Ashfield by-election 28 July 2020   Liberal NSW Richard Murden Liberal NSW   Concord   Liberal NSW John Adamson New South Wales politician Thomas Murphy Australian politician Labor NSW   Coogee Kevin Ellis politician Lou Walsh Darlinghurst   Labor NSW Frank FinnanFrank Finnan unsuccessfully contested Albury. zc Seat abolished Drummoyne   Liberal NSW Robert Dewley Roy Jackson politician Labor NSW   Dubbo   Country NSW Robert Medcalf Clarrie Robertson East Hills za New seatNotional labor East Hills and Fairfield were notionally Labor seats.1952 redistribution Arthur Williams Australian politician Fairfield za New seatNotional labor Clarrie Earl Hartley   Labor NSW Jim Chalmers New South Wales politician Independent Labor NSW   Kogarah   Liberal NSW Douglas Cross Bill Crabtree Labor NSW   Monaro   Independent Labor NSW John Seiffert Mudgee   Country NSW Frederick Cooke Leo Nott Newtown-Annandale   Labor NSW Arthur GreenupArthur Greenup was defeated in the preselection contest for Marrickville.Truth 21 Dec 52 zc Seat abolished North Sydney   Independent Labor NSW James Geraghty Australian politician Ray Maher Labor NSW   Parramatta   Liberal NSW George Gollan Kevin Morgan Australian politician Ryde Ken Anderson Australian politician Frank Downing Sutherland Cecil Monro Tom Dalton Aftermath Joe Cahill's triumph at this election ensured that he remained premier during the course of the parliament. Treatt faced increasing opposition within the Liberal Party and was replaced as Leader of the Opposition by Murray Robson in August 1954. Bruxner continued as the Leader of the Country Party, a position he had held since 1932. During the parliament there were 7 by-elections with no change of party representation except for Kahibah where an Independent Labor candidate Tom Armstrong defeated the endorsed Labor candidate. See also Candidates of the 1953 New South Wales state election Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, 1953–1956 Notes References Category:Elections in New South Wales Category:1953 elections in Australia Category:1950s in New South Wales Category:February 1953 in Australia