The district of Mackay is a Queensland Legislative Assembly

Queensland Legislative Assembly

The Queensland Legislative Assembly is the unicameral chamber of the Parliament of Queensland. Elections are held approximately once every three years. Voting is by the Optional Preferential Voting form of the Alternative Vote system...

 electoral district in North Queensland

North Queensland

North Queensland or the Northern Region is the northern part of the state of Queensland in Australia. Queensland is a massive state, larger than most countries, and the tropical northern part of it has been historically remote and undeveloped, resulting in a distinctive regional character and...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, encompassing the inner suburbs of the city of Mackay

Mackay, Queensland

Mackay is a city on the eastern coast of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, on the Pioneer River. Mackay is nicknamed the sugar capital of Australia because its region produces more than a third of Australia's cane sugar....

. Outer suburbs of the city are included in the neighbouring electorates of Mirani

Electoral district of Mirani

The district of Mirani is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Queensland.It covers much of the Queensland coast between the cities of Rockhampton and Mackay, as well as the hinterland west of Mackay. Towns include St Lawrence, Carmila, Sarina, and Eungella...

 and Whitsunday

Electoral district of Whitsunday

The district of Whitsunday is an electoral division in the Queensland Legislative Assembly, Queensland, Australia.It encompasses the Whitsunday Islands as well as mainland centres from Bowen to the northern suburbs of Mackay, Queensland, including the tourist resort of Airlie Beach and the sugar...

.

Mackay has been a safe seat for the Australian 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...

 since 1915, when it was won by William Forgan Smith

William Forgan Smith

William Forgan Smith , generally known as Forgan Smith, was Premier of the Australian state of Queensland from 1932 to 1942. He came to dominate politics in the state during the 1930s, and his populism, firm leadership, defence of states' rights and interest in state development make him something...

, who served as Premier of Queensland from 1932 to 1942. He retired undefeated in 1942 and was replaced by long-serving backbencher Fred Graham. Graham retired in 1969, and was succeeded by Ed Casey

Ed Casey

Edmund Denis Casey was best known as a former leader of the Australian Labor Party in Queensland between 1978 and 1982. He also served as Primary Industries Minister in the government of Wayne Goss between 1989 and 1995...

. Casey went to lose Labor preselection in 1972, but recontested and won as an independent, and did so again in 1975 before being readmitted to the party in 1977. He subsequently served as Labor leader from 1978 to 1982, and later as a minister in the Goss

Wayne Goss

Wayne Keith Goss was Premier of Queensland from 7 December 1989 until 19 February 1996.-Early life:He was born at Mundubbera, Queensland and educated at Inala High School and the University of Queensland...

 Labor government. He was succeeded upon his retirement by current MLA Tim Mulherin

Tim Mulherin

Timothy Sean "Tim" Mulherin is an Australian politician. Born in Mackay, he was a clerk on the Mackay Electricity Board before becoming involved in politics. From 1994 to 1995 he was a state organiser of the Australian Labor Party. In 1995, he was elected to the Queensland Legislative Assembly as...

, who has been comfortably re-elected ever since, winning with more than 60% of the vote in 2006.

Member for Mackay

First incarnation (1878–1888, 1 member)
Member		Party	Term
	Francis Amhurst	Unaligned	1878–1881
	Maurice Hume Black	Unaligned	1881–1888
Second incarnation (1888–1912, 2 members)
Member		Party	Term
	Maurice Hume Black	Unaligned	1888–1893
	David Dalrymple	Ministeralist	1888–1904
	James Chataway James Chataway James Vincent Chataway was an Australian newspaperman and politician. He served on the Queensland Legislative Assembly for the electoral district of Mackay from 29 April 1893 until 12 April 1901, and was the Minister for Agriculture from 12 October 1898 until 28 March 1899.-References:...	Ministeralist	1893–1901
	Walter Paget	Ministeralist/Opposition	1901–1912
	Albert Fudge	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...	1904–1907
	Edward Swayne	Opposition	1907–1912
Third incarnation (1912–present, 1 member)
Member		Party	Term
	Walter Paget	Ministeralist/Opposition	1912–1915
	William Forgan Smith William Forgan Smith William Forgan Smith , generally known as Forgan Smith, was Premier of the Australian state of Queensland from 1932 to 1942. He came to dominate politics in the state during the 1930s, and his populism, firm leadership, defence of states' rights and interest in state development make him something...	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...	1915–1942
	Fred Graham	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...	1943–1969
	Ed Casey Ed Casey Edmund Denis Casey was best known as a former leader of the Australian Labor Party in Queensland between 1978 and 1982. He also served as Primary Industries Minister in the government of Wayne Goss between 1989 and 1995...	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...	1969–1972
		Independent	1972–1977
		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...	1977–1995
	Tim Mulherin Tim Mulherin Timothy Sean "Tim" Mulherin is an Australian politician. Born in Mackay, he was a clerk on the Mackay Electricity Board before becoming involved in politics. From 1994 to 1995 he was a state organiser of the Australian Labor Party. In 1995, he was elected to the Queensland Legislative Assembly as...	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...	1995–present

Election results

External links

• Electorate Profile (Antony Green, ABC)