Women in the Australian Senate

There have been 69 women in the Australian Senate since the establishment of the Parliament of Australia. Women have had the right to both vote and sit in parliament since 1902 and all states and territories have been represented by a woman in the Senate. In the 41st and current Parliament of Australia 26 of the 76 senators are female.

History

The passage of the "Commonwealth Franchise Act" allowed women to both vote and stand for election to the Parliament of Australia.Women in South and Western Australia voted in the 1901 election.
] Indigenous Australian women did not achieve federal franchise in all jurisdictions until 1962, and were not required by law to enrol to vote until 1983.] Numerous women stood unsuccessfully as independents or as representatives of minor parties for election to the Senate, including prominent South Australian suffragist Vida Goldstein, who ran in 1903, 1910 and 1917. However, women were not successful in entering federal politics until World War II. The major parties did not endorse any female candidates for the Senate before the War.

The first woman to be elected to the Senate was Labor representative Dorothy Tangney in 1943; she represented Western Australia. Following Tangney's entry into politics, the Senate has continuously had women members. (By contrast, although the first woman member of the House of Representatives, Dame Enid Lyons, was also elected in 1943, that house has had women members continuously only since 1980.)

The second woman elected to the Senate, Annabelle Rankin, also achieved a number of firsts for women: she was the first female Whip, and she was the first woman with a federal portfolio when she became Minister for Housing in 1966. In 1975, Margaret Guilfoyle became the first female cabinet minister with a portfolio. In 1996 Margaret Reid was the first woman elected as President of the Senate.

Women in the Senate have made significant changes to Australian law which have benefited women. For example a private member's bill written by Senator Susan Ryan was crucial to the development of the "Sex Discrimination Act 1984", the "Affirmative Action (Equal Employment Opportunity for Women) Act 1986", the "Public Service Reform Act 1984" and the "Equal Employment Opportunity (Commonwealth Authorities) Act 1987".

List of women in the Australian Senate

Names in bold type indicate Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries.Names in "italics" indicate appointments made under section 15 of the Constitution, or through disqualification. Names marked with an asterisk (*) also served in the House of Representatives. Where no closing date is shown, the Senator’s term of service is unexpired.

ee also

*Women and government in Australia
*Women in the Australian House of Representatives

Notes

References

*Parliamentary Handbook of the Commonwealth of Australia. 2005. " [http://www.aph.gov.au/library/handbook/historical/women_parl.htm Women in Parliament] "
* [http://www.aph.gov.au/library/parl/41/womennow.htm Women in the Current (41st) Parliament]
*Ruedas, M. 1999. " [http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/pubs/briefs/brief3.htm Women in the Senate] ", Senate Brief 3, Parliament of Australia