Tasmanian state election, 1912

Tasmanian state election, 1912

30 April 1912

All 30 seats to the House of Assembly   First party Second party   Leader Elliott Lewis John Earle Party Commonwealth Liberal Labour Leader since 14 June 1912 1906 Leader's seat Denison Franklin Last election 18 seats 12 seats Seats won 16 seats 14 seats Seat change 2 2 Percentage 54.48% 45.54% Swing 3.87 6.58

Premier before election Elliott Lewis Commonwealth Liberal Elected Premier Elliott Lewis Commonwealth Liberal

A general election for the House of Assembly was held in the Australian state of Tasmania on 30 April 1912 (a Tuesday, as the convention of holding elections on a Saturday did not become common until the 1920s).

Background

Tasmania's incumbent Premier was Sir Elliott Lewis, who had won a seat in Denison as an Anti-Socialist in the 1909 election. Urged by his predecessor, John Earle, to organise against the Labour Party, Sir Elliott supported the formation of the Tasmanian Liberal League (not directly related to the modern Liberal Party of Australia which was founded in 1944).^[1] The Liberal Party would later regroup to contest the 1919 election as the Nationalist Party.^[2]

Key dates

Date	Event
23 March 1912	New electoral rolls came into force.[3]
4 April 1912	The Parliament was dissolved.[4]
30 April 1912	Polling day, between the hours of 8am and 6pm.
14 June 1912	The Lewis Ministry was reconstituted.
2 July 1912	Parliament was summoned for business.[5]

Results

Tasmanian state election, 30 April 1912 House of Assembly << 1909 — 1913 >>
Enrolled voters		103,513
Votes cast		76,052		Turnout	73.47%	+20.85%
Informal votes		2,166		Informal	2.85%	–0.01%
Summary of votes by party
Party		Primary votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
	Liberal	40,252	54.48%	+3.87%	16	– 2
	Labour	33,634	45.52%	+6.58%	14	+ 2
	Others			–10.45%	0	± 0
Total		73,886			30

Distribution of Seats

Electorate Seats won Bass             Darwin             Denison             Franklin             Wilmot

Labour   Liberal

Aftermath

The Liberal Party won the election, with a two-seat majority after Labour gained two seats. Despite leading the Liberals to victory, Elliott Lewis was criticised internally within the party, and resigned the leadership to Albert Solomon on 14 June the same year.^[1]

See also

• Members of the Tasmanian House of Assembly, 1912–1913
• Candidates of the Tasmanian state election, 1912

References

1. Scott Bennett, 'Lewis, Sir Neil Elliott (1858 - 1935)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 10, Melbourne University Press, 1986, pp 94-95.
2. Moon, Jeremy; Campbell Sharman (2003). Australian Politics and Government: The Commonwealth, the States, and the Territories. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-53205-1.
3. "Electoral Act 1907: A Proclamation", Tasmanian Government Gazette, 1912:876 (23 March 1912)
4. "Dissolution of the House of Assembly", Tasmanian Government Gazette, 1912:929A (4 April 1912)
5. "Parliament of Tasmania: A Proclamation", Tasmanian Government Gazette, 1912:1372 (21 June 1912)

External links

• Assembly Election Results, 1912, Parliament of Tasmania.
• Report on General Election, 1912, Tasmanian Electoral Commission, 30 April 1912.