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There have been 43 women in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly since its establishment in 1856. Women have had the right to vote in the assembly since 1902 and the right to stand as a candidate since 1918.
The first successful candidate for the Legislative Assembly was Millicent Preston-Stanley, who was elected as a Nationalist representative for the multi-member electorate of Eastern Suburbs in 1925, but only lasted one term before being defeated. Fourteen years later, Mary Quirk held the seat of Balmain for Labor after the death of her husband, becoming the first Labor woman in the Assembly. However, successful women candidates in the Legislative Assembly remained few and far between until the 1980s.
In the early 1980s, women began to break through into senior positions in the state; Janice Crosio became the first woman to serve as a minister in state parliament, serving in the Wran Labor ministry, and she was followed on the conservative side of politics by Rosemary Foot, who served as the deputy leader of the Liberal Party for a time. In 1996, Liberal Kerry Chikarovski became the first woman to lead a major party in New South Wales, although she was deposed in 2003. As of 2006, no woman has served as Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.
While there had been a number of women elected to the Legislative Council throughout the middle of the twentieth century, it was only at the 1988 state election that numbers began to grow in the Legislative Assembly. Seven women had been elected in the previous 132 years; six more joined them the 1988 election. Numbers have improved substantially in recent years, with women now occupying 24 seats in the current parliament. While far more than the pre-1988 situation, this still consists of only 22% of the seats in the Assembly.
Names in bold indicate women who have been appointed as Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries during their time in Parliament. Names in italics indicate entry into Parliament through a by-election and * symbolises members that have sat as members in both the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council.
| Name |
Party |
Electoral Division |
Period of service |
| Millicent Preston-Stanley |
Nationalist |
Eastern Suburbs |
May 30, 1925–September 7, 1927 (defeated) |
| Mary Quirk |
Labor |
Balmain |
January 14, 1939–May 22, 1950 (lost preselection) |
| Lilian Fowler |
Labor |
Newtown |
May 27, 1944–May 22, 1950 (defeated) |
| Mary Meillon |
Liberal |
Murray |
October 10, 1973–June 9, 1980 (died) |
| Rosemary Foot |
Liberal |
Vaucluse |
October 7, 1978–February 13, 1986 (retired) |
| Janice Crosio |
Labor |
Fairfield |
September 19, 1981–February 16, 1990 (resigned; elected to the Australian House of Representatives) |
| Wendy Machin |
National |
Gloucester
Manning
Port Macquarie |
October 12, 1985–August 28, 1996 (resigned) |
| Pam Allan |
Labor |
Wentworthville
Blacktown |
March 19, 1988–present |
| Anne Cohen |
Liberal |
Minchinbury
Badgerys Creek |
March 19, 1988–March 3, 1995 (defeated) |
| Dawn Fraser |
Independent |
Balmain |
March 19, 1988–May 3, 1991 (defeated) |
| Clover Moore |
Independent |
Bligh |
March 19, 1988–present |
| Sandra Nori |
Labor |
McKell
Port Jackson |
March 19, 1988–present |
| Robyn Read |
Independent |
North Shore |
November 5, 1998–May 3, 1991 (defeated) |
| Deirdre Grusovin * |
Labor |
Heffron |
June 23, 1990–March 20, 2003 (lost preselection) |
| Kerry Chikarovski |
Liberal |
Lane Cove |
May 25, 1991–March 20, 2003 (retired) |
| Dr Liz Kernohan |
Liberal |
Camden |
May 25, 1991–March 20, 2003 (retired) |
| Faye Lo Po' |
Labor |
Penrith |
May 25, 1991–March 20, 2003 (retired) |
| Jillian Skinner |
Liberal |
North Shore |
February 5, 1994–present |
| Gabrielle Harrison |
Labor |
Parramatta |
August 27, 1994–March 20, 2003 (retired) |
| Reba Meagher |
Labor |
Cabramatta |
October 22, 1994–present |
| Marie Andrews |
Labor |
Peats |
March 25, 1995–present |
| Diane Beamer |
Labor |
Badgerys Creek
Mulgoa |
March 25, 1995–present |
| Marie Ficarra |
Liberal |
Georges River |
March 25, 1995–March 5, 1999 (defeated) |
| Jill Hall |
Labor |
Swansea |
March 25, 1995–September 1, 1998 (resigned; elected to the Australian House of Representatives) |
| Peta Seaton |
Liberal |
Southern Highlands |
May 25, 1996–March 24, 2007 |
| Lorna Stone |
Liberal |
Sutherland |
December 20, 1997–March 5, 1999 (defeated) |
| Cherie Burton |
Labor |
Kogarah |
March 27, 1999–present |
| Katrina Hodgkinson |
National |
Burrinjuck |
March 27, 1999–present |
| Alison Megarrity |
Labor |
Menai |
March 27, 1999–present |
| Marianne Saliba |
Labor |
Illawarra |
March 27, 1999–present |
| Barbara Perry |
Labor |
Auburn |
September 8, 2001–present |
| Judy Hopwood |
Liberal |
Hornsby |
February 23, 2002–present |
| Gladys Berejiklian |
Liberal |
Willoughby |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Linda Burney |
Labor |
Canterbury |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Angela D'Amore |
Labor |
Drummoyne |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Tanya Gadiel |
Labor |
Parramatta |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Shelley Hancock |
Liberal |
South Coast |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Noreen Hay |
Labor |
Wollongong |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Virginia Judge |
Labor |
Strathfield |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Kristina Keneally |
Labor |
Heffron |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Karyn Paluzzano |
Labor |
Penrith |
March 22, 2003–present |
| Dawn Fardell |
Independent |
Dubbo |
November 20, 2004–present |
| Carmel Tebbutt * |
Labor |
Marrickville |
September 17, 2005–present |
[edit] See also
