1947 Victorian state election

Australian state election April 2022 the local government elections held in August 1947 Victorian local elections 1947 Victorian state election Victoria 1901 parliamentary no 1945 Victorian state election 1945 1950 Victorian state election 1950 All 65 seats in the Victorian Legislative Assembly33 seats needed for a majority yes 1947 11 8 TomHollway.jpg 140 130 170 0 10 center Thomas Hollway 3 December 1940 Liberal Liberal/Country coalition Ballarat 37.16% 16.65 10 seats 27 seats 17 Premier Sir John McDonald.jpg 140 130 170 0 10 center John McDonald 22 November 1945 Country Shepparton 14.92% 4.05 18 seats 20 seats 2 John_Cain_1954.jpg 180 130 170 32 24 center John Cain 18 October 1937 Australian Labor Party (Victorian Branch) Northcote 40.87% 0.15 31 seats 17 seats 14 1947 Victorian state election.svg 330px Results in each electorate. Premier John Cain Australian Labor Party (Victorian Branch) Thomas Hollway Liberal Party of Australia (Victorian Division) The 1947 Victorian state election was held in the Australian state of Victoria on Saturday 8 November 1947 to elect 65 members of the state's Legislative Assembly. The election resulted in a landslide defeat for the Labor government of John Cain, which lost 14 seats and was reduced to 17, its lowest number since 1932.10 November 1947 VICTORIA THROWS LABOUR GOVERNMENT OUT https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/WC19471110.2.34 1 April 2026 Whanganui Chronicle 5 The opposition Liberal Party and Country Party won a combined total of 47 seats, with the Liberals alone capturing 27—a gain of 17—to become the largest party in the Assembly for the first time since the party's formation. The campaign was dominated by federal issues, particularly the Chifley government's proposal to nationalise private banks. Opposition parties campaigned heavily against bank nationalisation, framing the state election as a referendum on the policy. Liberal leader Thomas Hollway, who became premier following the election, declared the result "the beginning of the fight against the Commonwealth Government" and pledged that the new government would "fight to the end to defeat Mr. Chifley's Bank Nationalisation programme." Country Party leader John McDonald interpreted the outcome as confirmation that "socialism is out for good in Victoria." Three Labor ministers—Deputy Premier Frank Field, Minister of Mines William McKenzie, and Chief Secretary Bill Slater—lost their seats. Labor officials blamed attacks by federal and state Labor figures on former prisoners of war Adair Blain and Wilfrid Kent Hughes, both of whom stood as Liberal candidates, for contributing to the scale of the defeat. The election marked the end of Labor's brief minority government, which had relied on the support of two independents since the 1945 election. Both independents were among the earliest casualties on election night. Future premier Henry Bolte was first elected to Parliament at this election.Dunstan David Sir Henry Edward Bolte (1908–1990) Australian Dictionary of Biography https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/bolte-sir-henry-edward-12227 2026-04-01 Canberra National Centre of Biography, Australian National University en Background In late 1947, the minority Labor government of Premier John Cain was under intense pressure from the combined opposition parties.3 October 1947 VICTORIAN CRISIS https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/26426923 6 April 2026 The Mercury 3 The Liberal Party, which held a majority in the Victorian Legislative Council, rejected the government's Supply Bill, depriving the administration of the authority to disburse funds after its existing spending approval expired. The tactic was intended to force a political crisis and bring about an early election. However, the Cain government had delayed presenting the Supply Bill until the last possible moment, meaning that thousands of public servants would go unpaid as a direct result of the Council's rejection. The Opposition's hope of framing the ensuing election primarily as a referendum on the federal Chifley government's proposed bank nationalisation was also considered politically risky, with observers questioning whether many electors would change their state vote to express disapproval of a federal policy. Prime Minister Ben Chifley was expected to continue his pursuit of bank nationalisation regardless of any state election result. Results Results of the 1947 Victorian state election (Legislative Assembly) Legislative Assembly Victorian state election, 8 November 1947Election held on 8 November 1947, Australian Politics and Elections Database (University of Western Australia).Colin A Hughes, A Handbook of Australian Government and Politics 1890-1964, Canberra: Australian National University Press, 1968 (0708102700). Legislative Assembly Victorian state election 1945 1950 1,291,515 1,206,815 93.44 +5.46 16,102 1.33 −0.75 Labor VIC 486,635 40.87 −0.15 17 −14 yes Liberal VIC 442,451 37.16 +16.65 27 +17 yes Country VIC 177,698 14.92 −4.05 20 +2 Communist 1,575 0.13 −2.73 0 ±0 Independent 82,354 6.92 −3.57 1 −2 1,190,713 65 |} See also Candidates of the 1947 Victorian state election 1946 Victorian Legislative Council election References Category:1947 elections in Australia Category:Elections in Victoria (state) Category:1940s in Victoria (state) Category:November 1947 in Australia Category:History of Australia