Ballarat (constituency)
Coordinates: 37 ° 31 ' S , 144 ° 4' E
Ballarat is one of 150 constituencies used to elect the Australian House of Representatives . It is located in the state of Victoria and was founded in 1901. It is one of the first 75 constituencies in Australia. It is named after the provincial town of Ballarat , whose name is derived from the Aboriginal word balaarat for "resting place".
The constituency includes the town of Ballarat and the towns of Bacchus Marsh , Ballan , Blackwood , Buninyong , Clunes , Creswick , Daylesford , Myrniong , Trentham and parts of Burrumbeet .
history
At various times the constituency also included other cities such as Ararat , Maryborough, and Stawell .
The constituency's most prominent MP was Alfred Deakin , who was Prime Minister of Australia three times. Liberal Senator Michael Ronaldson is the grandson of Archibald Fisken , who was also a constituency MP. In the general election in Australia in 1919 , the nationalist candidate Edwin Kerby beat incumbent Charles McGrath with just one vote. This was the closest election result in Australian history. Charles McGrath's allegation that there were irregularities during the election sparked a by-election seven months later. Charles McGrath decided this for himself.
Previous MPs
| Surname | Political party | Terms of office |
|---|---|---|
| Peter Cleeland | Australian Labor Party | 1984-1990 |
| Alfred Deakin | Protectionist Party | 1901-1909 |
| Commonwealth Liberal Party | 1909-1913 | |
| Charles McGrath | Australian Labor Party | 1913-1919 |
| Edwin Kerby | Nationalist Party of Australia | 1919-1920 |
| Charles McGrath | Australian Labor Party | 1920-1931 |
| United Australia Party | 1931-1934 | |
| Archibald Fisken | United Australia Party | 1934-1937 |
| Reg Pollard | Australian Labor Party | 1937-1949 |
| Alan Pittard | Liberal Party of Australia | 1949-1951 |
| Bob Joshua | Australian Labor Party | 1951-1955 |
| Australian Labor Party (Anti-Communist) | 1955-1955 | |
| Dudley Erwin | Liberal Party of Australia | 1955-1975 |
| Jim Short | Liberal Party of Australia | 1975-1980 |
| John Mildren | Australian Labor Party | 1980-1990 |
| Michael Ronaldson | Liberal Party of Australia | 1990-2001 |
| Catherine King | Australian Labor Party | 2001– |