| Parliament name |
Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name |
Senate |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
House of Representatives
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
24 November 2007 |
| Purpose of elections |
Elections were held for one-half of the Senators on the normal expiry of the members' term of office. |
On 14 October 2007
Prime Minister John Howard called elections for 24 November. At stake were all 150 seats in the House of Representatives
and 40 of the 76 seats in the Senate.
Prime Minister Howard (Liberal Party) was seeking a fifth consecutive term in office. In the previous elections held on 9 October 2004
his party had won 74 seats in the House of Representatives
promising to maintain low interest rates for further economic prosperity. He formed a coalition government comprising the Liberal Party
the National's (12 seats) and the Country Liberal Party (one seat).
His main rival was Mr. Kevin Rudd of the centre-left Australian Labor Party (ALP). A former diplomat
Mr. Rudd was elected as party leader on 4 December 2006. The ALP
which had won 60 seats in 2004
was seeking a return to power after 11 years in the opposition.
In all
1
421 candidates ran for the elections. 13 candidates vied for the seat in the Bennelong electorate in Sydney held by Prime Minister Howard.
The 2007 elections saw once again a duel between the Liberal Party and the ALP.
Prime Minister Howard urged voters to support his party for further economic growth. He argued that an ALP government would wreck the economy. The 68-year old leader said that if his party won the elections
he would hand over leadership mid-term to the treasurer
Mr. Peter Costello. The 50-year old Mr. Rudd
who campaigned under the slogan of "new leadership"
promised to change labour laws
arguing that many workers had not benefited from economic growth.
The Liberal leader insisted that the country should maintain its 1
500 troops in Iraq and 1
000 in Afghanistan as long as needed
and maintain a close alliance with the U.S. The ALP leader argued that 550 combat troops should be withdrawn from Iraq by mid-2008
while more troops should be sent to Afghanistan. He also pledged to shut down Australia's offshore refugee processing and detention centres in Nauru and Papua New Guinea.
Prime Minister Howard continued to oppose the Kyoto Protocol on climate change and its carbon emission targets
arguing they would damage the country's economy. Mr. Rudd promised to ratify the Kyoto Protocol and pledged to cut carbon emissions by 60 per cent by 2050. In 2007
Australia suffered its worst drought in 100 years. Global warming was reportedly a major concern for many citizens.
During the election campaign
the Liberal Party was damaged by two incidents. On 7 November
the Reserve Bank raised interest rates to 6.75 per cent
the sixth increase since the 2004 elections
when Prime Minister Howard had promised to keep the interest rate low. Two days before the polling day
further controversy was caused by leaflets circulated in Sydney by volunteers and members of the Liberal Party
which linked the ALP to Muslim extremists. The Prime Minister condemned the act and emphasized he had not authorized the leaflets.
The final results gave a major victory to the ALP
which won 83 seats in the House of Representatives
while the Liberal Party took 55.
A well-known former television journalist
Ms. Maxine McKew (ALP) narrowly defeated Prime Minister Howard
who had held his Bennelong seat since 1974. He became the first incumbent prime minister to be voted out since Mr. Stanley Bruce in 1929.
In the Senate elections
the ALP won 18 seats
controlling 32 seats in all. The Liberal Party won 15 seats and also holds 32 seats in all. Newly-elected Senators are due to take up their posts on 1 July 2008. Until then the Liberal Party remains the largest party and retains its one seat majority in the Senate.
On 3 December
Mr. Rudd was officially sworn in as Prime Minister
alongside Deputy Prime Minister Ms. Julia Gillard
who became the first woman to hold the post. Mr. Rudd's first act was to sign Australia's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 24 November 2007 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
13'646'539
12'987'814 (95.17%)
331'009
12'656'805 |
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of votes |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Candidates |
Votes |
|
|
% |
|
|
| Australian Labor Party (ALP) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Liberal Party |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Australian Greens |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| The Nationals |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Country Liberal Party (CLP) - The Territory Party |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Non affiliated |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Family First Party |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Australian Democrats |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
Seats Feb. 2008 |
Seats July 2008 |
|
|
| Australian Labor Party (ALP) |
18
|
28 |
32 |
|
|
| Liberal Party |
15
|
34 |
32 |
|
|
| Australian Greens |
3
|
4 |
5 |
|
|
| The Nationals |
2
|
4 |
4 |
|
|
| Country Liberal Party (CLP) - The Territory Party |
1
|
1 |
1 |
|
|
| Non affiliated |
1
|
0 |
1 |
|
|
| Family First Party |
0
|
1 |
1 |
|
|
| Australian Democrats |
0
|
4 |
0 |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
26
14
35.00%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Sources:
- http://vtr.aec.gov.au/
- IPU Group (29.01.2008
30.01.2008)
Note on the distribution of seats:
- The figures under "Seats 2007" refer to the number of members elected when the Senate was partially renewed (40 seats) in November 2007. Those members will be sworn in in July 2008.
- The figures under "Seats Feb. 2008" show the composition of the Senate in February 2008
when the Senate held its first session after the 2007 elections. They include outgoing senators elected in 2001.
- The figures under "Seats July 2008" include the members elected in November 2007.
The "Seats 2007" column shows the breakdown for members elected when the Senate was partially renewed (40 seats) in November 2007. Those members will be sworn in in July 2008. As at February 2008
27 of the 76 members of the Senate
including outgoing senators elected in 2001
were women. The total number of women in the Senate will remain at 27 after July 2008. (Senate
30.01.2008). |
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
