A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives seat of Higgins on 5 December 2009.[1] This was triggered as a result of the resignation of former Treasurer and former Liberal Party deputy leader Peter Costello.[2] The by-election was held on the same day as the Bradfield by-election.
The by-election was contested on the same boundaries drawn for Higgins at the 2007 federal election. At that election, the Liberal Party won the seat over the Labor Party with 57.04 per cent of the vote on a two-party-preferred basis. The 2007 result was the closest in the seat's 60-year history. The Liberal candidate has never had to go to preferences to win the seat.
The writ for the by-election was issued on 30 October, with the rolls closing on 9 November. Candidate nominations closed 12 November, and were announced the following day.[3]
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Costello first won the seat of Higgins at the 1990 election, and retained the seat in the six subsequent elections. At the 2007 federal election, the opposition Kevin Rudd-led Labor Party defeated the incumbent John Howard-led Liberal-National coalition government. This marked the first change of government in over 11 years. Costello had served as Treasurer since 1996, and deputy Liberal leader since 1994, firstly under Alexander Downer and then under John Howard. He returned to the backbenches.
The Higgins and Bradfield by-election campaigns were overshadowed by Liberal infighting over Labor's Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, culminating in the replacement of Malcolm Turnbull with Tony Abbott as Liberal leader. Although fairly safe on paper, some commentators including Malcolm Mackerras tipped the Greens to defeat the Liberals in Higgins, and force the Liberals to preferences in Bradfield.[4][5]
Liberal Kelly O'Dwyer focussed her campaigning on local issues and attempted to distance herself from federal affairs, whereas the Greens Clive Hamilton campaigned primarily for stronger action on climate change.[6]
The following table is the order and party affiliation of each candidate that has nominated to contest the seat of Higgins. Candidates are placed in the order of the ballot paper.[7]
| Ballot Number | Party | Candidate | Profession | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Independent | Stephen Murphy | Computer programmer | Supported by the unregistered Climate Sceptics Party[8] | |
| 2 | Australian Sex Party | Fiona Patten | Party leader | [9] | |
| 3 | Liberal Party of Australia | Kelly O'Dwyer | Executive, National Australia Bank | Former staffer for Peter Costello[10] | |
| 4 | Liberal Democratic Party | Isaac Roberts | Accountant | ||
| 5 | Australian Greens | Dr Clive Hamilton | Professor of Public Ethics, Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics | Former Executive Director, the Australia Institute[11] | |
| 6 | Australian Democrats | David Collyer | Former Parliamentary Advisor | Worked for former senator Lyn Allison [12] | |
| 7 | Independent | Joseph Toscano | Anarchist campaigner | ||
| 8 | One Nation | Steve Raskovy | Former Hungarian wrestler and refugee[13] | ||
| 9 | Independent | Peter Brohier | Lawyer | ||
| 10 | Democratic Labor Party | John Mulholland | Psychologist |
The Australian Labor Party did not stand a candidate.
The Liberal Party easily retained the seat.[14]
| Higgins by-election, 2009[15] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Liberal | Kelly O'Dwyer | 36,421 | 54.57 | +0.96 | |
| Greens | Clive Hamilton | 21,628 | 32.40 | +21.65 | |
| Democratic Labor | John Mulholland | 2,572 | 3.85 | +3.85 | |
| Sex Party | Fiona Patten | 2,144 | 3.21 | +3.21 | |
| Democrats | David Collyer | 1,531 | 2.29 | +1.08 | |
| Independent | Stephen Murphy | 1,145 | 1.72 | +1.72 | |
| Independent | Joseph Toscano | 523 | 0.78 | +0.78 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Isaac Roberts | 336 | 0.50 | +0.50 | |
| Independent | Peter Brohier | 236 | 0.35 | +0.35 | |
| One Nation | Steve Raskovy | 211 | 0.32 | +0.32 | |
| Total formal votes | 66,747 | 95.85 | −1.58 | ||
| Informal votes | 2,870 | 4.15 | +1.58 | ||
| Turnout | 69,637 | 79.00 | −14.77 | ||
| Two-candidate preferred result | |||||
| Liberal | Kelly O'Dwyer | 40,203 | 60.23 | +3.19 | |
| Greens | Clive Hamilton | 26,544 | 39.77 | +39.77 | |
| Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |||
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