Victorian state election, 1904

Victorian state election, 1904

1 June 1904

the 65 seats in the Victorian Legislative Assembly   First party Second party   Leader Thomas Bent George Prendergast Party Commonwealth Liberal Australian Labor Party Leader since 1904 1904 Leader's seat Brighton North Melbourne Last election seats 12 seats Seats won 35 seats 17 seats Seat change 5 Percentage 36.14 32.55 Swing +30.86 14.54%

Premier before election Thomas Bent Commonwealth Liberal Elected Premier Thomas Bent Commonwealth Liberal

The 1908 Victorian state election was held in the Australian state of Victoria on 1 June 1904 to elect 55 of the 67 members of the state's Legislative Assembly.^[1] The other 12 seats were uncontested.

The election was in one and two member districts, using first past the post (plurality) voting.

Background

Ministerialists were a group of members of parliament who supported a government in office but were not bound by tight party discipline. Ministerialists represented loose pre-party groupings who held seats in state parliaments up to 1914. Such members ran for office as independents or under a variety of political labels but saw themselves as linked to other candidates by their support for a particular premier or government.

Thomas Bent was elected on 16 February 1904 leader of the Commonwealth Liberal Party, replacing Premier William Irvine who went into federal politics, and went into the election as the incumbent Premier. In 1904 George Prendergast became the first leader of the Victorian Parliamentary Labor Party. At the June 1904 election Bent won a comfortable majority.

Results

Legislative Assembly

Victorian state election, 1 June 1904[1] Legislative Assembly << 1902 — 1907 >>
Enrolled voters		277,006
Votes cast		153,377		Turnout	63.38%
Informal votes		1,498		Informal
Summary of votes by party
Party		Primary votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
	Commonwealth Liberal Party	55,426	36.14	+30.86	35
	Labor	49,922	32.55	+14.54	17
	Opposition	37,422	24.40	+6.31	12
	Independent Ministerialists	7,554	4.93	-8.52	2
	Independent Labor	2,108	1.37	-0.50	1
	Independent	945	0.62	*	0
Total		153,377			67

See also

• Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, 1904–1907

References

1. "Australian Politics and Elections Database: 1 June 1904". University of Western Australia. Retrieved 4 September 2016.