Peter Francis Adamson (born 1961 in Darwin) is a former Australian politician. He was educated at private schools, and then at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

, where he graduated with a bachelor of Arts, majoring in Politics. Prior to entering politics, he was the sports anchor on Channel Eight (now Channel Nine) News.

Political career

In 1994, future Chief Minister

Clare Martin Clare Majella Martin (born 15 June 1952) is a former Australian journalist and politician. She was elected to the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly in a shock by-election win in 1995. She was appointed Opposition Leader in 1999, and won ...

was approached to contest the Darwin Legislative Assembly seat of

Casuarina ''Casuarina'', also known as she-oak, Australian pine and native pine, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Casuarinaceae, and is native to Australia, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, islands of the western Pacific Ocean, and e ...

for the Labor Party at the 1994 election. However, she was defeated by Peter Adamson, standing as the candidate for the

Country Liberal Party The Country Liberal Party of the Northern Territory (CLP), commonly known as the Country Liberals, is a centre-right and conservative political party in Australia's Northern Territory. In territory politics, it operates in a two-party system wi ...

. He was re-elected at the 1997 election but defeated by Labor candidate Kon Vatskalis at the 2001 election when Labor won government in the Territory for the first time.

Lord Mayor and subsequent fall from grace

In 2002 Adamson was elected Lord

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of Darwin. While Adamson knew many early successes, including economic investment, roadwork repairs, and sending himself and others as a mayoral delegation to

Anchorage Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolita ...

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

(Darwin's sister city) to discuss expanding economic ties, Adamson's career soon came spiralling out of control, with the revelation of misuse of council funds to purchase comical items such as a refrigerator, women's underwear and a Darth Vader voice distorter. The unfolding media speculation became "something of a ritual for several months as the case against Peter Adamson has ground through the court system with colourful and sometimes bizarre aspects of the story". Adamson, on initial criticism chose to see the funny side, on New Year's Eve he arrived at a party dressed as a fridge, with his girlfriend who went as a policewoman, Although he had stood aside from the job, Adamson was still drawing his $90,000 a year Lord Mayor's salaries when convicted. He was subsequently replaced by Garry Lambert. Adamson subsequently lost his appeal, with the judge calling him a sociopathic liar. Adamson was sentenced to seven months in prison but the sentence was to be suspended after two months and was released from prison in April 2008. He is engaged to Leanne Meharry.Darwin Mayor Peter Adamson - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adamson, Peter 1961 births Living people Country Liberal Party members of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly Mayors and lord mayors of Darwin Members of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly University of Sydney alumni 21st-century mayors of places in Australia 20th-century Australian politicians