| McEwen Australian House of Representatives Division |
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|---|---|
Division of McEwen (green) in Victoria |
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| Created: | 1984 |
| MP: | Rob Mitchell |
| Party: | Labor |
| Namesake: | John McEwen |
| Area: | 10,675 km² (4,122 sq mi) |
| Demographic: | Rural |
The Division of McEwen is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Victoria. It is located in the centre of the state, north of the capital city of Melbourne. It includes the outer northern suburbs of Whittlesea, Epping, Doreen, Mernda, Hurstbridge and Diamond Creek, and regional centers such as Woodend, Tooborac, Broadford, Seymour, Yea, Eildon, Marysville, Kinglake and Warburton, on top of many other small towns.
The Division was proclaimed at the redistribution of 14 September 1984, and was first contested at the 1984 Federal election. It was named after Rt Hon Sir John McEwen, leader of the Country Party of Australia, who was appointed caretaker Prime Minister of Australia after the disappearance of Harold Holt in 1967.
The 2007 federal election resulted in McEwen becoming the most marginal seat in the country. Incumbent Liberal MP Fran Bailey led throughout most of the initial count, only be initially found to have lost to former Labor state MP Rob Mitchell by six votes. Bailey subsequently requested and was granted a full recount, which resulted in a change in the lead and a twelve-vote victory for Bailey. The result was challenged in the High Court of Australia in its capacity as the Court of Disputed Returns, and was referred to the Federal Court of Australia. Over seven months after the election and a review of 643 individual votes, the court altered the formal status of several dozen, eventually declaring Bailey the winner by 27 votes. Following the resolution of the long-running dispute, Bailey called for a total overhaul of the voting system.[1][2][3]
| Member | Party | Term | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Cleeland | Labor | 1984–1990 | |
| Fran Bailey | Liberal | 1990–1993 | |
| Peter Cleeland | Labor | 1993–1996 | |
| Fran Bailey | Liberal | 1996–2010 | |
| Rob Mitchell | Labor | 2010–present | |
| Australian federal election, 2010: McEwen | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Labor | Rob Mitchell | 45,374 | 43.17 | +2.97 | |
| Liberal | Cameron Caine | 42,054 | 40.01 | -5.76 | |
| Greens | Steve Meacher | 12,440 | 11.84 | +3.16 | |
| Family First | Belinda Clarkson | 3,358 | 3.19 | +0.70 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Mark Bini | 1,332 | 1.27 | +0.44 | |
| Secular | Robert Gordon | 549 | 0.52 | +0.52 | |
| Total formal votes | 105,107 | 95.60 | -0.44 | ||
| Informal votes | 4,843 | 4.40 | +0.44 | ||
| Turnout | 109,950 | 94.96 | -1.28 | ||
| Two-candidate preferred result | |||||
| Labor | Rob Mitchell | 58,144 | 55.32 | +5.34 | |
| Liberal | Cameron Caine | 46,963 | 44.68 | -5.34 | |
| Labor gain from Liberal | Swing | +5.34 | |||
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