Electoral division of Brennan
| Brennan Northern Territory—Legislative Assembly | |
|---|---|
|
Location of Brennan in the Darwin/Palmerston area | |
| Territory | Northern Territory |
| Created | 1990 |
| MP | Peter Chandler |
| Party | Country Liberal Party |
| Namesake | Harold Brennan |
| Electors | 5,061 (2012) |
| Area | 8 km2 (3.1 sq mi) |
| Demographic | Urban |
Brennan is an electoral division of the Legislative Assembly in Australia's Northern Territory. It was first created in 1990, and derives its name from Harold "Tiger" Brennan, a former member of the Legislative Council and Mayor of Darwin. Brennan includes both rural and urban areas, covering an area of 8 km² and encompassing the Palmerston suburbs of Bakewell, Gunn, Farrar, Johnston as well as half of Rosebery. There were 5,061 people enrolled in the electorate as of August 2012.
Palmerston has long been one of the heartlands of the Country Liberal Party. Indeed, until 2005, the Australian Labor Party had never come close to winning a Palmerston-based seat in the history of the Assembly. However, Brennan is located in what had long been reckoned as a particularly conservative area, and it was the safest of all those held by the CLP after the 2001 election. Denis Burke, who served as Chief Minister of the Northern Territory from 1999 to 2001 and had just been reelected as Opposition Leader a few months before the election, was not expected to have any difficulty holding the seat in the foreseeable future. However, in a shock result that had not been predicted by any prominent commentator, much less either candidate, Brennan fell to the ALP candidate, James Burke, at the 2005 election. Peter Chandler regained the seat for the CLP at the 2008 election.
Members for Brennan
| Member | Party | Term | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Ortmann | Country Liberal | 1990–1994 | |
| Independent | 1994–1994 | ||
| Denis Burke | Country Liberal | 1994–2005 | |
| James Burke | Labor | 2005–2008 | |
| Peter Chandler | Country Liberal | 2008–present | |
Election results
| Northern Territory general election, 2012: Brennan[1] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Country Liberal | Peter Chandler | 2,683 | 64.2 | +11.6 | |
| Labor | Russell Jeffrey | 1,493 | 35.8 | −11.6 | |
| Total formal votes | 4,176 | 97.7 | +1.9 | ||
| Informal votes | 99 | 2.3 | −1.9 | ||
| Turnout | 4,275 | 84.5 | +4.2 | ||
| Country Liberal hold | Swing | +11.6 | |||