Electoral district of Albany

Albany Western Australia—Legislative Assembly
State or territory:	Western Australia
Dates current:	1890–present
MP:	Peter Watson
Party:	Labor
Namesake:	Albany
Area:	4,312 km² (1,665 sq mi)
Demographic:	Agricultural

The Electoral district of Albany is a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Western Australia. Albany is named for the port and regional city of Western Australia which falls within its borders. It is one of the oldest electorates in Western Australia, with its first member having been elected in the inaugural 1890 elections of the Legislative Assembly. It is regarded as a swinging seat, and has been held by the Australian Labor Party since the 2001 election, at which the present Member, Peter Watson, was first elected.

Geography

As at the 2007 redistribution, the electoral district of Albany has the same boundaries as the City of Albany, including Albany and its suburbs, the nearby towns of Elleker, Kalgan, Lower King, Torbay.^[1] This represents a significant expansion of its boundaries, in part due to the "one-vote one-value" electoral legislation which largely abolished malapportionment between country and metropolitan electorates in the Legislative Assembly. Prior to 2007, the electorate was largely limited to Albany and its suburbs–the additional sections were within the now abolished electorate of Stirling.^[2]

Members for Albany

Member		Party	Term
	Lancel de Hamel	Oppositionist	1890–1894
	George Leake	Oppositionist	1894–1900
	John Hassell	Oppositionist	1900–1901
	James Gardiner	Oppositionist	1901–1904
	Charles Keyser	Labor	1904–1905
	Edward Barnett	Ministerialist	1905–1909
	William Price	Labor	1909–1917
	Herbert Robinson	Nationalist	1917–1919
	John Scaddan	Nationalist	1919–1920
		Country	1920–1923
		Country (MCP)	1923–1924
	Arthur Wansbrough	Labor	1924–1936
	Leonard Hill	Country	1936–1956
	Jack Hall	Labor	1956–1970
	Wyndham Cook	Labor	1970–1974
	Leon Watt	Liberal	1974–1993
	Kevin Prince	Liberal	1993–2001
	Peter Watson	Labor	2001–present

Election results

Western Australian state election, 2008: Albany
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labor	Peter Watson	7,709	39.14	+2.5
	Liberal	Andrew Partington	6,486	32.93	-2.7
	WA Nationals	Sam Harma	2,628	13.34	+5.2
	Greens WA	Diane Evers	1,492	7.58	+1.7
	Christian Democrats	Justin Moseley	950	4.82	+0.8
	Family First	Colin Pyle	431	2.19	-0.7
Total formal votes			19,696	97.09	+1.30
Informal votes			590	2.91	-1.30
Turnout			20,286	90.13
Two-candidate preferred result[1]
	Labor	Peter Watson	9,884	50.23	+2.5
	Liberal	Andrew Partington	9,795	49.77	–2.5
	Labor gain from Liberal		Swing	+2.5

¹ The 2007 redistribution saw the seat change from a Labor seat, with a 1.4% margin, to a notional Liberal seat with a margin of 2.3%. Therefore, the swings presented are based on the ABC's calculation of redistributed results, rather than the actual results at the 2005 election.

References

1. ^ Western Australian Electoral Commission (29 October 2007). "2007 Electoral Distribution - Final Boundaries - South West Region - Albany". http://www.boundarieswa.com/2007/Final-Boundaries/South-West-Region/Albany/. Retrieved 2008-08-05. 
2. ^ Western Australian Electoral Commission (4 August 2003). "2003 Electoral Distribution - Final Boundaries - - South West Region - Albany". http://www.boundarieswa.com/2003/Boundaries/South-West-Region/Albany/. Retrieved 2008-01-12. 

External links

• Electorate Profile (Antony Green, ABC)