1914 Australian federal election
The 1914 Australian federal election was held in Australia on 5 September 1914. The election had been called before the declaration of war in August 1914. All 75 seats in the House of Representatives and all 36 seats in the Senate were up for election, as a result of the first double dissolution being granted. The incumbent Liberal Party, led by Prime Minister Joseph Cook, was defeated by the opposition Labor Party under Andrew Fisher, who returned for a third term as prime minister.
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All 75 seats in the House of Representatives 38 seats were needed for a majority in the House All 36 seats in the Senate | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Registered | 2,811,515 ![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Turnout | 1,726,906 (73.53%)[lower-alpha 1] ( ![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() Results by division for the House of Representatives, shaded by winning party's margin of victory. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Cook government is one of only two non-Labor governments in Australian history that did not last longer than the Labor government it had replaced; the other was the Howard government, which was defeated in 2007.
Additionally this marks the only time that three consecutive elections resulted in a change in government. In fact, since this election there have never been two consecutive elections resulting in a change in government. It also marks the third overall time that an election resulted in a change in government.
Fisher is one of only two Opposition Leaders from the Labor party to become prime minister with previous federal ministerial experience, the other being Anthony Albanese . This election was the second time he accomplished this, the first being in 1910.
This election resulted in the highest ever primary vote percentage for the Labor party at 50.89% and was the first time that the Labor party achieved more than 50% of the primary vote. The only other time this happened was in 1954.
Results
House of Representatives

Party | Votes | % | Swing | Seats | Change | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labor | 858,451 | 50.89 | +2.42 | 42 | +5 | |
Liberal | 796,397 | 47.21 | −1.73 | 32 | -6 | |
Independents | 31,915 | 1.89 | −0.70 | 1 | +1 | |
Total | 1,686,763 | 75 | ||||
Labor | Win | 42 | +5 | |||
Liberal | 32 | −6 |
- Notes
- Independents: George Wise (Gippsland, Vic)
- Thirteen members were elected unopposed – seven Labor and six Liberal.
Seats changing hands
Seat | Pre-1914 | Swing | Post-1914 | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Member | Margin | Margin | Member | Party | ||||
Corio, Vic | Liberal | William Kendell | 1.4 | 3.0 | 1.2 | Alfred Ozanne | Labor | ||
Gippsland, Vic | Liberal | James Bennett | 5.0 | 6.0 | 1.0 | George Wise | Independent | ||
Grampians, Vic | Liberal | Hans Irvine | 3.9 | 4.2 | 0.3 | Edward Jolley | Labor | ||
Indi, Vic | Liberal | Cornelius Ahern | 1.8 | 3.0 | 1.0 | Parker Moloney | Labor | ||
Riverina, NSW | Liberal | Franc Falkiner | 1.0 | 3.1 | 2.1 | John Chanter | Labor | ||
Werriwa, NSW | Liberal | Alfred Conroy | 5.9 | 5.9 | 0.0 | John Lynch | Labor | ||
Post-election pendulum
Government seats | |||
Australian Labor Party | |||
Marginal | |||
Werriwa (NSW) | John Lynch | ALP | 00.0 |
Grampians (Vic) | Edward Jolley | ALP | 00.3 |
Indi (Vic) | Parker Moloney | ALP | 01.0 |
Corio (Vic) | Alfred Ozanne | ALP | 01.2 |
Ballaarat (Vic) | Charles McGrath | ALP | 01.2 |
Riverina (NSW) | John Chanter | ALP | 02.1 |
Macquarie (NSW) | Ernest Carr | ALP | 03.3 |
Gwydir (NSW) | William Webster | ALP | 03.8 |
Grey (SA) | Alexander Poynton | ALP | 04.0 |
Illawarra (NSW) | George Burns | ALP | 04.2 |
Hunter (NSW) | Matthew Charlton | ALP | 04.6 |
Bendigo (Vic) | John Arthur | ALP | 05.1 |
Boothby (SA) | George Dankel | ALP | 05.3 |
Denison (Tas) | William Laird Smith | ALP | 05.9 |
Fairly safe | |||
Bass (Tas) | Jens Jensen | ALP | 06.0 |
Darwin (Tas) | King O'Malley | ALP | 06.1 |
Fremantle (WA) | Reginald Burchell | ALP | 06.3 |
Oxley (Qld) | James Sharpe | ALP | 06.8 |
East Sydney (NSW) | John West | ALP | 07.3 |
Fawkner (Vic) | Joseph Hannan | ALP | 09.3 |
Safe | |||
Brisbane (Qld) | William Finlayson | ALP | 10.3 |
Darling (NSW) | William Spence | ALP | 10.5 |
Dalley (NSW) | Robert Howe | ALP | 11.3 |
Cook (NSW) | James Catts | ALP | 11.7 |
Wide Bay (Qld) | Andrew Fisher | ALP | 14.3 vs QFU |
Maribyrnong (Vic) | James Fenton | ALP | 14.3 |
Herbert (Qld) | Fred Bamford | ALP | 14.4 |
Bourke (Vic) | Frank Anstey | ALP | 15.9 |
Adelaide (SA) | George Edwin Yates | ALP | 16.4 |
Capricornia (Qld) | William Higgs | ALP | 17.4 |
South Sydney (NSW) | Edward Riley | ALP | 18.8 |
Melbourne (Vic) | William Maloney | ALP | 19.3 |
Very safe | |||
Hindmarsh (SA) | William Archibald | ALP | 24.4 |
West Sydney (NSW) | Billy Hughes | ALP | 25.3 |
Barrier (NSW) | Josiah Thomas | ALP | 29.7 |
Batman (Vic) | Frank Brennan | ALP | unopposed |
Kalgoorlie (WA) | Hugh Mahon | ALP | unopposed |
Kennedy (Qld) | Charles McDonald | ALP | unopposed |
Maranoa (Qld) | Jim Page | ALP | unopposed |
Melbourne Ports (Vic) | James Mathews | ALP | unopposed |
Newcastle (NSW) | David Watkins | ALP | unopposed |
Yarra (Vic) | Frank Tudor | ALP | unopposed |
Non-government seats | |||
Liberal Party | |||
Marginal | |||
Hume (NSW) | Robert Patten | LIB | 01.0 |
Calare (NSW) | Henry Pigott | LIB | 01.2 |
Corangamite (Vic) | Chester Manifold | LIB | 01.6 |
Lilley (Qld) | Jacob Stumm | LIB | 02.3 |
Wakefield (SA) | Richard Foster | LIB | 02.4 |
Flinders (Vic) | William Irvine | LIB | 02.7 |
Nepean (NSW) | Richard Orchard | LIB | 02.7 |
Robertson (NSW) | William Fleming | LIB | 03.4 |
Lang (NSW) | Elliot Johnson | LIB | 03.5 |
Wannon (Vic) | Arthur Rodgers | LIB | 03.6 |
Dampier (WA) | Henry Gregory | LIB | 03.9 |
Perth (WA) | James Fowler | LIB | 05.8 |
Fairly safe | |||
Wentworth (NSW) | Willie Kelly | LIB | 06.5 |
New England (NSW) | Percy Abbott | LIB | 06.7 |
Barker (SA) | John Livingston | LIB | 06.7 |
Darling Downs (Qld) | Littleton Groom | LIB | 06.9 |
Moreton (Qld) | Hugh Sinclair | LIB | 07.3 |
Henty (Vic) | James Boyd | LIB | 07.7 |
Echuca (Vic) | Albert Palmer | LIB | 08.2 |
Balaclava (Vic) | William Watt | LIB | 08.4 |
Parkes (NSW) | Bruce Smith | LIB | 08.5 |
Eden-Monaro (NSW) | Austin Chapman | LIB | 09.2 |
Swan (WA) | John Forrest | LIB | 09.2 |
Safe | |||
Wilmot (Tas) | Llewellyn Atkinson | LIB | 10.9 |
Kooyong (Vic) | Robert Best | LIB | 13.3 vs IND |
North Sydney (NSW) | Granville Ryrie | LIB | 17.6 |
Very safe | |||
Angas (SA) | Paddy Glynn | LIB | unopposed |
Cowper (NSW) | John Thomson | LIB | unopposed |
Franklin (Tas) | William McWilliams | LIB | unopposed |
Parramatta (NSW) | Joseph Cook | LIB | unopposed |
Richmond (NSW) | Walter Massy-Greene | LIB | unopposed |
Wimmera (Vic) | Sydney Sampson | LIB | unopposed |
Independents | |||
Gippsland (Vic) | George Wise | IND | 01.0 vs LIB |
See also
- Candidates of the 1914 Australian federal election
- Members of the Australian House of Representatives, 1914–1917
- Members of the Australian Senate, 1914–1917
Notes
- Turnout in contested seats
References
External links
- University of WA election results in Australia since 1890