A general election for the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly was held on Saturday, 15 October 2016.
The 15-year incumbent
Labor Party, led by
Chief Minister Andrew Barr, won a fifth term over the main opposition
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
, led by
opposition leader
The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
Jeremy Hanson
Jeremy David Hanson, CSC, MLA (born 18 February 1967) is a former Australian Army officer and is an Australian politician with the Liberal Party, elected to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly as one of seven MLAs for the M ...
. On election night, ABC analyst
Antony Green
Antony John Green (born 2 March 1960) is an Australian psephologist and commentator. He is the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's chief election analyst.
Early years and background
Born in Warrington, Lancashire, in northern England, Gre ...
predicted that Labor would once again form a minority government with the support of the Greens, with Liberal leader Hanson saying in a speech it would be very difficult for the Liberals to win government.
On 22 October, the final list of elected candidates was confirmed; the Labor Party winning 12 seats, the Liberal Party 11 seats and the
Greens 2 seats. Labor and the Greens subsequently signed off on a formal Parliamentary Agreement, which outlined shared policy priorities and allowed Greens leader
Shane Rattenbury to retain a seat in the
Cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filin ...
whilst mandating that the Greens not move or support any
motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
in the Labor Government, except in instances of gross misconduct or corruption.
Prior to this election, candidates were elected to fill all 17
Legislative Assembly seats in the
unicameral
Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one.
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...
parliament which consisted of three multi-member electorates,
Brindabella (five seats),
Ginninderra
Ginninderra is the name of the former agricultural lands surrendered to urban development on the western and north-western fringes of Canberra, the capital of Australia. Ginninderra corresponds with the watershed of Ginninderra Creek, which is ...
(five seats) and
Molonglo (seven seats), using a
proportional representation
Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...
single transferable vote
Single transferable vote (STV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which voters cast a single vote in the form of a ranked-choice ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vote may be transferred according to alternate p ...
method known as the
Hare-Clark system. On 5 August 2014, the Assembly voted to increase the size of the Assembly to 25 members, elected from five electorates of five seats each. The Hare-Clark system continued. The election was conducted by the
ACT Electoral Commission
The Australian Capital Territory Electoral Commission, branded Elections ACT, is the agency of the Government of the Australian Capital Territory with responsibility for the conduct of elections and referendums for the unicameral ACT Legislativ ...
.
Of the 25 elected members, 13 were women, representing the first female parliamentary majority in Australian history.
Results
Primary vote by electorate
Final distribution of seats
Key dates
*Last day to lodge applications for party register: 30 June 2016
*Party registration closed: 8 September 2016
*Pre-election period commenced and nominations opened: 9 September 2016
*
Rolls close: 16 September 2016
*Nominations close: 21 September 2016
*Nominations declared and ballot paper order determined: 22 September 2016
*Pre-poll voting commences: 27 September 2016
*Polling day: 15 October 2016
*Last day for receipt of postal votes: 21 October 2016
Background
The incumbent
Labor Party led by
Chief Minister Andrew Barr attempted to win re-election for a fifth term in the
unicameral
Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one.
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...
ACT Legislative Assembly
The Legislative Assembly for the Australian Capital Territory (known in short as the ACT Legislative Assembly) is the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It sits in the Legislative Assembly Building on Civic S ...
. Labor, led by
Katy Gallagher
Katherine Ruth Gallagher (born 18 March 1970) is an Australian politician who has been serving as the Minister for Finance, Minister for Women, Minister for the Public Service and Vice-President of the Executive Council in the Albanese Gover ...
, formed a minority coalition government with the Greens after the
2012 election, where Labor won 8 seats, Liberal 8 seats, Greens 1 seat. The Greens retained their balance of power in the election despite losing the majority of their 4-seat representation, with sole remaining representative
Shane Rattenbury entering the cabinet to form a coalition government. Gallagher resigned as Chief Minister and Labor leader on 5 December 2014 to enter the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
in the vacancy left by
Kate Lundy. She was replaced by her deputy Andrew Barr on 11 December 2014.
The opposition, the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
, also had a change in leadership.
Zed Seselja
Zdenko Matthew "Zed" Seselja (born 27 March 1977) is an Australian politician who was a Senator for the Australian Capital Territory from 2013 to 2022, representing the Liberal Party. He was the Minister for International Development and the ...
, the leader of the party since 2007, stood down on 11 February 2013, to challenge Liberal Party pre-selection for the Senate at the
2013 federal election. Seselja eventually won his pre-selection bid, and was elected Senator for the Australian Capital Territory at the federal election. He was replaced as leader of the Liberal Party by
Jeremy Hanson
Jeremy David Hanson, CSC, MLA (born 18 February 1967) is a former Australian Army officer and is an Australian politician with the Liberal Party, elected to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly as one of seven MLAs for the M ...
.
All members of the unicameral Assembly faced re-election, with members being elected by the
Hare-Clark system of
proportional representation
Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...
. The Assembly was previously divided into three electorates: five-member
Brindabella (including
Tuggeranong and parts of the
Woden Valley) and
Ginninderra
Ginninderra is the name of the former agricultural lands surrendered to urban development on the western and north-western fringes of Canberra, the capital of Australia. Ginninderra corresponds with the watershed of Ginninderra Creek, which is ...
(including
Belconnen and suburbs) and seven-member
Molonglo (including
North Canberra,
South Canberra,
Gungahlin,
Weston Creek, and the remainder of the
Woden Valley). These electorates, were redistributed following the increase in the size of the Assembly to 25 seats.
At the end of May 2015, the following electorates were announced:
*
Brindabella – contains the district of
Tuggeranong (except the suburb of
Kambah).
*
Ginninderra
Ginninderra is the name of the former agricultural lands surrendered to urban development on the western and north-western fringes of Canberra, the capital of Australia. Ginninderra corresponds with the watershed of Ginninderra Creek, which is ...
– contains the district of
Belconnen (except the suburbs of
Evatt,
Giralang,
Kaleen,
McKellar
McKellar is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Archibald McKellar (1816–1894), Canadian politician
* Archie McKellar (1912–1940), Royal Air Force fighter pilot during the Battle of Britain
* Colin McKellar (1903–1970), Au ...
and
Lawson
Lawson may refer to:
Places Australia
* Lawson, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra
* Lawson, New South Wales, a town in the Blue Mountains
Canada
* Lawson, Saskatchewan
* Lawson Island, Nunavut
United States
* Lawson, Arkansas
* ...
).
*
Kurrajong – contains the districts of
Canberra Central and
Majura
*
Murrumbidgee – contains the districts of the
Woden Valley,
Weston Creek,
Molonglo Valley and the
Tuggeranong suburb of
Kambah.
*
Yerrabi – contains the districts of
Gungahlin,
Hall
In architecture, a hall is a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age and early Middle Ages in northern Europe, a mead hall was where a lord and his retainers ate and also slept. Later in the Middle Ages, the gre ...
and the
Belconnen suburbs of
Evatt,
Giralang,
Kaleen,
McKellar
McKellar is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Archibald McKellar (1816–1894), Canadian politician
* Archie McKellar (1912–1940), Royal Air Force fighter pilot during the Battle of Britain
* Colin McKellar (1903–1970), Au ...
and
Lawson
Lawson may refer to:
Places Australia
* Lawson, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra
* Lawson, New South Wales, a town in the Blue Mountains
Canada
* Lawson, Saskatchewan
* Lawson Island, Nunavut
United States
* Lawson, Arkansas
* ...
.
Election dates are set in statute with four-year fixed terms, to be held on the third Saturday of October every four years.
Campaign
The opposition
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
opposed the
Light rail in Canberra
The Canberra light rail network, also known as Canberra Metro, is a light rail system serving the city of Canberra, Australia. The initial line links the northern town centre of Gungahlin to the city centre (Civic) and has 14 stops. Service ...
project, so did the
Like Canberra
Like Canberra was a political party registered for the 2016 Australian Capital Territory general election. It was formally registered on 28 June 2016. It fielded two candidates in each of the five electorates.
The party's views included support f ...
and
Sustainable Australia
The Sustainable Australia Party (officially registered as Sustainable Australia Party – Stop Overdevelopment / Corruption), formerly the Sustainable Population Party, is an Australian political party. Formed in 2010, it describes itself as being ...
. In April 2015, the Liberal party announced it would cancel any contracts for the light rail if it won the 2016 ACT election.
A year out from the poll, the light rail project was already predicted to be the election's major issue. As predicted, the light rail project was the major issue of the campaign.
The election saw the Labor government returned, with the party claiming the result as an endorsement of the project.
Candidates
Registered parties
Twelve parties were registered with the
ACT Electoral Commission
The Australian Capital Territory Electoral Commission, branded Elections ACT, is the agency of the Government of the Australian Capital Territory with responsibility for the conduct of elections and referendums for the unicameral ACT Legislativ ...
as eligible for the October 2016 election, ten of which nominated candidates for the election.
*
Animal Justice Party
Animal Justice Party (AJP) is a political party in Australia founded in 2009. The party was registered by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) on 3 May 2011. The party is also registered in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, ...
*
Australian Labor Party (ACT Branch)
*
Australian Sex Party ACT
*
Canberra Community Voters
Canberra Community Voters is a political party in the Australian Capital Territory formed by former lobbyist Richard Farmer. In an interview with the RiotACT, Farmer stated that "The clubs have given me the money, you can write that... I’ve not a ...
*
Liberal Democratic Party
*
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
*
Like Canberra
Like Canberra was a political party registered for the 2016 Australian Capital Territory general election. It was formally registered on 28 June 2016. It fielded two candidates in each of the five electorates.
The party's views included support f ...
*
Sustainable Australia
The Sustainable Australia Party (officially registered as Sustainable Australia Party – Stop Overdevelopment / Corruption), formerly the Sustainable Population Party, is an Australian political party. Formed in 2010, it describes itself as being ...
(ACT)
*
The ACT Greens
*
The Community Alliance Party
The Community Action Party (ACT), formerly The Community Alliance Party, is a minor political party based in the Australian Capital Territory
The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Terri ...
(ACT)
*
The Flux Party – ACT ''(did not contest)''
* VoteCanberra ''(did not contest)''
Retiring members
Labor
*
Simon Corbell
Simon Corbell (born 21 November 1970) is a former Australian politician and Deputy Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory. He was also Attorney-General, Minister for Health, Minister for the Environment and Minister for the Capital ...
(
Molonglo)
Liberal
*
Val Jeffery (
Brindabella)
Brindabella
Five seats were up for election.
Ginninderra
Ginninderra is the name of the former agricultural lands surrendered to urban development on the western and north-western fringes of Canberra, the capital of Australia. Ginninderra corresponds with the watershed of Ginninderra Creek, which is ...
Five seats were up for election.
Kurrajong
Five seats were up for election.
Murrumbidgee
Five seats were up for election.
Yerrabi
Five seats were up for election.
Newspaper endorsements
See also
*
2012 Australian Capital Territory general election
*
References
External links
Elections ACT: 2016 Legislative Assembly electionAustralian Broadcasting Corporation: ACT Election 2016
{{DEFAULTSORT:Australian Capital Territory General Election, 2016
2016 elections in Australia
Elections in the Australian Capital Territory
October 2016 events in Australia
2010s in the Australian Capital Territory