Spouse of the Prime Minister of Australia

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The spouse of the Prime Minister of Australia is a position that has only been occupied by women to date, thus the spouse is usually known as the Prime Minister's wife.

The Prime Minister's spouse has no official duties. Some wives, notably Elizabeth Chifley, remained at home and took no part in their husband's public life. Others, notably Enid Lyons, were preoccupied with raising children. Most recent Prime Ministerial wives have been involved in charities or community organisations, working to raise public awareness, funds and support for a range of causes.

Some wives have received official recognition for their services to the community. Four have been given damehoods: Dame Mary Hughes, Dame Enid Lyons, Dame Pattie Menzies and Dame Zara Holt. Margaret Whitlam was made an Officer of the Order of Australia.

Only one Prime Ministerial wife has gone into politics in her own right: Dame Enid Lyons, who became the first woman to be elected to the House of Representatives in 1943, four years after her husband's death. She was a junior minister in the Menzies Government from 1949 to 1951. Other wives, including Janette Howard, have been credited with great behind-the-scenes political influence, but this has usually been impossible to verify.

In addition to assisting their partner in political campaigns, Prime Ministers’ wives are expected to participate in official duties that come with the position. These can include hosting foreign dignitaries in Australia, and particularly entertaining the spouses of dignitaries; accompanying their husbands on national and international trips; attending conferences and functions; launching ships; and public speaking engagements, particularly in their husbands' constituencies.

In these roles they have attended the opening of Parliament; hosted visitors at the Lodge and Kirribilli; visited Buckingham Palace, the White House or the Japanese Imperial Palace; been present at royal coronations and conferences on war and women.

[edit] Table

No.	Name	Husband	From	To
1	Jane Barton	Edmund Barton	1 January 1901	24 September 1903
2	Pattie Deakin	Alfred Deakin	24 September 1903	27 April 1904
3	Ada Watson	John Watson	27 April 1904	18 August 1904
4	Flora Reid	George Reid	18 August 1904	5 July 1905
-	Pattie Deakin (2nd time)	Alfred Deakin	5 July 1905	13 November 1908
5	Margret Fisher	Andrew Fisher	13 November 1908	2 June 1909
-	Pattie Deakin (3rd time)	Alfred Deakin	2 June 1909	29 April 1910
-	Margret Fisher (2nd time)	Andrew Fisher	29 April 1910	24 June 1913
6	Mary Cook	Joseph Cook	24 June 1913	17 September 1914
-	Margret Fisher (3rd time)	Andrew Fisher	17 September 1914	27 October 1915
7	Mary Hughes	Billy Hughes	27 October 1915	9 February 1923
8	Ethel Bruce	Stanley Bruce	9 February 1923	22 October 1929
9	Sarah Scullin	James Scullin	22 October 1929	6 January 1932
10	Enid Lyons	Joseph Lyons	6 January 1932	7 April 1939
11	Ethel Page	Sir Earle Page	7 April 1939	26 April 1939
12	Pattie Menzies	Robert Menzies	26 April 1939	28 August 1941
13	Ilma Fadden	Arthur Fadden	28 August 1941	7 October 1941
14	Elise Curtin	John Curtin	7 October 1941	5 July 1945
15	Vera Forde	Francis Forde	6 July 1945	13 July 1945
16	Elizabeth Chifley	Ben Chifley	13 July 1945	19 December 1949
-	Pattie Menzies (2nd time)	Robert Menzies	19 December 1949	26 January 1966
17	Zara Bate	Harold Holt	26 January 1966	19 December 1967
18	None*		19 December 1967	10 January 1968
19	Bettina Gorton	John Gorton	10 January 1968	10 March 1971
20	Sonia McMahon	William McMahon	10 March 1971	5 December 1972
21	Margaret Whitlam	Gough Whitlam	5 December 1972	11 November 1975
22	Tamie Fraser	Malcom Fraser	11 November 1975	11 March 1983
23	Hazel Hawke	Bob Hawke	11 March 1983	20 December 1991
24	Annita Keating	Paul Keating	20 December 1991	11 March 1996
25	Janette Howard	John Howard	11 March 1996	Incumbent

• There was no Prime Ministerial spouse between 1967 and 1968 because Prime Minister John McEwen was a widower.