Tasmanian legislative election, 1996
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Legislative elections for the Tasmanian House of Assembly were held on 24 February 1996. The Liberal Party of Australia lead by Ray Groom hoped to secure another term in government.
The Opposition Labor party was headed by Michael Field and the Tasmanian Greens were headed by Christine Milne.
Prior to the election the Liberal party held 19 of the 35 seats, a majority in the House of Assembly. Labor held 11 and the Tasmanian Greens held five.
Before the election Groom had increased the wages of all serving politicians by 40%, this was done early in his term and he had hoped the electorate would forget about it. The electorate was reminded in 1996, by the "Extremely Greedy 40% Extra Party" who fielded candidates. Bumper stickers were placed on cars around the state reading "40% never forget". Although politicians wages had been on freeze for some time and the rise was in keeping with inflation.
Groom promised he would only govern in majority.
Contents |
[edit] Result
| Party | Number of votes | Percentage | Seats won | Percent Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Party of Australia | 121,391 | 41.2% | 16 | -12.9% |
| Australian Labor Party | 119,260 | 40.5% | 14 | +11.6% |
| Tasmanian Greens | 32,813 | 11.1% | 4 | -2.1% |
| Other | 21,207 | 7.2% | 1 | +3.5% |
| Percentage | Change | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Turn out | 311,486 | 95.9% | +1.0% |
| Informal | 16,815 | 5.3% | +0.8% |
[edit] Distribution of Seats
| Electorate | Seats won | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bass | |||||||
| Braddon | |||||||
| Denison | |||||||
| Franklin | |||||||
| Lyons | |||||||
| Australian Labor Party | |
| Liberal Party of Australia | |
| Tasmanian Greens | |
| Independent |
[edit] Aftermath
The election ended with a swing against the Liberals. A fall of over 10% caused them to lose majority. The Liberals lost three sitting members; Carole Cains, John Barker and Brian Davison. The Liberals polled strongly in Braddon and Bass but poorly in Franklin.
Labor may have been able to govern at the end of this election but refused to enter a minority government with the Greens. Labor polled well in Denison and Franklin.
The Tasmanian Greens suffered a state wide swing against them and lost one of their seats – Lance Armstrong in Bass – but gained the balance of power. The Greens Di Hollister narrowly held onto her seat in Braddon. The Greens received a high vote in Denison.
The Extremely Greedy 40% Extra Party polled 0.8% of the vote. Well behind winning a seat, but their appearance on the ballot paper succeeded in reminding voters of the previous wage increases. Independent Bruce Goodluck narrowly won a seat at the expense of the Liberals Paul Harriss. The Australian Democrats ran four candidates in Franklin, they received a combined quota of 0.3 and were unsuccessful at winning a seat.
Groom who had lead his party to minority government and before the election claimed the Liberals would not govern in minority, was forced to resign and was replaced by Tony Rundle.
This election was the last time Tasmanians voted 35 members into parliament because it was reduced to 25 members in 1998.
[edit] See also
| Elections of the Tasmanian House of Assembly |  |
|---|---|
| 1909 | 1912 | 1913 | 1916 | 1919 | 1922 | 1925 | 1928 | 1931 | 1934 | 1937 | 1941 | 1946 | 1948 | 1950 | 1955 | 1956
1959 | 1964 | 1969 | 1972 | 1976 | 1979 | 1982 | 1986 | 1989 | 1992 | 1996 | 1998 | 2002 | 2006 |
|
