The Division of Swan is an Australian Electoral Division located in Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

. The division is named after the Swan River

Swan River (Western Australia)

The Swan River estuary flows through the city of Perth, in the south west of Western Australia. Its lower reaches are relatively wide and deep, with few constrictions, while the upper reaches are usually quite narrow and shallow....

.

For several decades, it has been a marginal seat, extending along the Swan and Canning Rivers from the affluent suburbs in the City of South Perth to the west, which typically vote for the Liberal Party

Liberal Party of Australia

The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...

, to the City of Belmont to the east and parts of the City of Canning to the south-east, which are more working-class in orientation and typically vote for the Labor Party

Australian Labor Party

The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...

. A redistribution ahead of the 2010 election has added the strongly Labor-voting suburb of Langford

Langford, Western Australia

Langford is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located within the City of Gosnells. Its postcode is 6147.Langford is a working-class residential suburb located approximately 11 km from Perth's central business district. Recently the suburb has been upgraded and redeveloped, especially since...

, which was previously within Tangney

Division of Tangney

The Division of Tangney is an Australian electoral division in the state of Western Australia. Eligible voters within the Division elect a single representative, known as the member for Tangney, to the Australian House of Representatives...

, which has made it a notionally Labor seat.

The division was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election. Historically, the electorate was a country seat extending north to Dongara

Dongara, Western Australia

Dongara is a town located 351 km north-northwest of Perth on the Brand Highway. The town is located at the mouth of the Irwin River. In recent years the area has been marketed as the 'Rock lobster capital of Australia'....

, east to Merredin

Merredin, Western Australia

-Economy:The agricultural land around Merredin produces 40% of Western Australia’s wheat quota. As a focal point for the region, Merredin’s local bulk handling co-operative receives and processes in excess of a million tonnes of grain every year...

 and south to the coast. It contracted to an area east of the Darling Range and became a safe Country Party

National Party of Australia

The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...

 seat. Prior to the 1949 election

Australian federal election, 1949

Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 December 1949. All 121 seats in the House of Representatives, and 42 of the 60 seats in the Senate were up for election, where the single transferable vote was introduced...

, its old area became the new seat of Moore

Division of Moore

The Division of Moore is an Australian electoral division in the state of Western Australia. Eligible voters within the Division elect a single representative, known as the member for Moore, to the Australian House of Representatives...

, while Swan moved into approximately its present position, although initially extending as far north-east as Midland

Midland, Western Australia

Midland is a suburb in the Perth, Western Australia metropolitan area, as well as the regional centre for the City of Swan local government area that covers the Swan Valley and parts of the Darling Scarp to the east. It is situated at the intersection of Great Eastern Highway and Great Northern...

.

From 2004 to 2007 it was the third most marginal electorate in Australia, after Hindmarsh

Division of Hindmarsh

The Division of Hindmarsh is an Australian Electoral Division in South Australia covering the western gulfside suburbs of Adelaide.The division was created in 1903 and is named for Sir John Hindmarsh, who was Governor of South Australia 1836-38. For many years it was one of the safest Labor seats...

 and Kingston

Division of Kingston

The Division of Kingston is an Australian Electoral Division in South Australia covering the far-south metropolitan area of Adelaide. The division was first proclaimed in 1949....

, with the ALP incumbent Kim Wilkie

Kim Wilkie

Kim Wilkie , Australianpolitician, was an Australian Labor Party member of theAustralian House of Representatives from October 1998 to December 2007, representing the Electoral Division of Swan, Western Australia. He was born in Perth, Western Australia, and was a Youth Employment Placement...

 winning 50.08% of the two-party-preferred vote in 2004.

In the 2007 election, Liberal candidate Steve Irons

Steve Irons

Stephen James "Steve" Irons is an Australian politician. He is the Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives for the electoral division of Swan in Western Australia. He was the sole Liberal to unseat a sitting Labor MP at the 2007 election, defeating Kim Wilkie by 164...

 won the seat with a swing of 0.19%.

Members

Member		Party	Term
	John Forrest John Forrest Sir John Forrest GCMG was an Australian explorer, the first Premier of Western Australia and a cabinet minister in Australia's first federal parliament....	Protectionist Protectionist Party The Protectionist Party was an Australian political party, formally organised from 1889 until 1909, with policies centred on protectionism. It argued that Australia needed protective tariffs to allow Australian industry to grow and provide employment. It had its greatest strength in Victoria and in...	1901–1909
		Commonwealth Liberal Commonwealth Liberal Party The Commonwealth Liberal Party was a political movement active in Australia from 1909 to 1916, shortly after federation....	1909–1916
		Nationalist Nationalist Party of Australia The Nationalist Party of Australia was an Australian political party. It was formed on 17 February 1917 from a merger between the conservative Commonwealth Liberal Party and the National Labor Party, the name given to the pro-conscription defectors from the Australian Labor Party led by Prime...	1916–1918
	Edwin Corboy Edwin Corboy Edwin Wilkie "Ted" Corboy was an Australian politician. From 1918 until 2010 Corboy held the record as the youngest ever Australian Member of Parliament.-Early life:...	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	1918 Swan by-election, 1918 The 1918 Swan by-election was a by-election for the Division of Swan in the Australian House of Representatives, following the death of the sitting member Sir John Forrest... –1919
	John Prowse John Prowse John Henry Prowse was an Australian politician. Born in Adelong, New South Wales, he was educated at public schools and then at Kings College, Melbourne. He became an insurance agent and then a station owner in Western Australia, where he eventually became a Perth City Councillor, serving as Mayor...	Country	1919 Australian federal election, 1919 Federal elections were held in Australia on 13 December 1919. All 75 seats in the House of Representatives, and 19 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent Nationalist Party of Australia led by Prime Minister of Australia Billy Hughes defeated the opposition Australian... –1922
	Henry Gregory Henry Gregory (politician) Henry Gregory was an Australian politician. Born in Kyneton, Victoria, where he was educated, he moved to the Western Australian goldfields in 1894. He became Mayor of Menzies Shire as well as a stockbroker, farmer and press proprietor...	Country	1922 Australian federal election, 1922 Federal elections were held in Australia on 16 December 1922. All 75 seats in the House of Representatives, and 19 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent Nationalist Party of Australia led by Prime Minister of Australia Billy Hughes lost its majority... –1940
	Thomas Marwick Thomas Marwick Thomas William Marwick was an Australian politician.Born in York, Western Australia, he was educated at Catholic schools and at Perth Technical College before becoming an engineer. He farmed at Brookton and at York before entering politics. In 1936, he was appointed to the Australian Senate to...	Country	1940–1943
		Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...  Country National Party of Australia The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...	1943–1943
	Donald Mountjoy Donald Mountjoy Donald Alfred Mountjoy was an Australian politician. Born in Middle Swan, Western Australia, he was educated at state schools before becoming a labourer and railwayman, as well as an official with the Australian Railways Union...	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	1943 Australian federal election, 1943 Federal elections were held in Australia on 21 August 1943. All 74 seats in the House of Representatives, and 19 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent Australian Labor Party led by Prime Minister of Australia John Curtin easily defeated the opposition Country Party led... –1946
	Leonard Hamilton Leonard Hamilton (Australian politician) Leonard William Hamilton was an Australian politician. Born in Jarrahdale, Western Australia, he was educated at Perth Boys School before becoming a wheat and sugar farmer. He served in the military from 1917-1920 and from 1940-1945...	Country	1946 Australian federal election, 1946 Federal elections were held in Australia on 28 September 1946. All 74 seats in the House of Representatives, and 19 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election... –1949
	Bill Grayden Bill Grayden William Leonard "Bill" Grayden AM was an Australian politician. Born in Perth, Western Australia, he was educated at state schools and then at Perth Technical College, becoming a mechanical engineer. He served in the military from 1940-1946...	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...	1949 Australian federal election, 1949 Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 December 1949. All 121 seats in the House of Representatives, and 42 of the 60 seats in the Senate were up for election, where the single transferable vote was introduced... –1954
	Harry Webb Harry Webb (Australian politician) Charles Harry Webb was an Australian politician. Born in England, he migrated to Australia in 1913 and was educated at state schools, after which he became a locomotive engineman...	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	1954 Australian federal election, 1954 Federal elections were held in Australia on 29 May 1954. All 121 seats in the House of Representatives were up for election, no Senate election took place... –1955
	Richard Cleaver Richard Cleaver Richard Cleaver AM CBE was an Australian politician. Born in Perth, Western Australia, he was educated at Perth Modern School before becoming a chartered secretary and accountant, and then a management consultant. He served in the military 1941-1946. In 1955, he was elected to the Australian House...	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...	1955 Australian federal election, 1955 Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 December 1955. All 122 seats in the House of Representatives, and 30 of the 60 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Party of Australia led by Prime Minister of Australia Robert Menzies with coalition partner the Country Party... –1969
	Adrian Bennett Adrian Bennett Adrian Frank Bennett was an Australian politician. Born in Perth, Western Australia, he was educated at Catholic schools before becoming a transport worker. He was secretary of the Transport Workers' Union and also sat on the councils of Canning Shire and its successor Canning Town...	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	1969 Australian federal election, 1969 Federal elections were held in Australia on 25 October 1969. All 125 seats in the House of Representatives were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Party of Australia led by Prime Minister of Australia John Gorton with coalition partner the Country Party led by John McEwen defeated the Australian... –1975
	John Martyr John Martyr John Raymond Martyr is a former Australian politician.Born in Melbourne, he was a political and economic consultant before entering politics. Martyr had a long history of involvement with the Australian Labor Party from his late teens, but due to his involvement with the anti-communist Catholic...	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...	1975 Australian federal election, 1975 Federal elections were held in Australia on 13 December 1975. All 127 seats in the House of Representatives, and all 64 seats in the Senate were up for election following a double dissolution of both Houses.... –1980
	Kim Beazley Kim Beazley In the October 1998 election, Labor polled a majority of the two-party vote and received the largest swing to a first-term opposition since 1934. However, due to the uneven nature of the swing, Labor came up eight seats short of making Beazley Prime Minister....	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	1980 Australian federal election, 1980 Federal elections were held in Australia on 18 October 1980. All 125 seats in the House of Representatives, and 34 of the 64 seats in the Senate, were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Party of Australia led by Malcolm Fraser with coalition partner the National Country Party led by Doug... –1996
	Don Randall Don Randall Donald James Randall , Australian politician, is a Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives. He represented the Division of Swan, Western Australia, 1996–98, and has represented the Division of Canning, Western Australia, since November 2001. He was born in Merredin, Western...	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...	1996–1998
	Kim Wilkie Kim Wilkie Kim Wilkie , Australianpolitician, was an Australian Labor Party member of theAustralian House of Representatives from October 1998 to December 2007, representing the Electoral Division of Swan, Western Australia. He was born in Perth, Western Australia, and was a Youth Employment Placement...	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	1998–2007
	Steve Irons Steve Irons Stephen James "Steve" Irons is an Australian politician. He is the Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives for the electoral division of Swan in Western Australia. He was the sole Liberal to unseat a sitting Labor MP at the 2007 election, defeating Kim Wilkie by 164...	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...	2007–present

Election results