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1951 Prahran state by-election

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1951 Prahran state by-election
← 1950 16 June 1951 1952 →
Electoral district of Prahran in the
Victorian Legislative Assembly
Registered24,715
Turnout84.7% (Decrease 9.5)
  First party Second party
 
Candidate Robert Pettiona Desmond McGinnes
Party Labor Liberal and Country
First preference vote 10,922 10,829
Percentage 52.7% 48.8%
Swing Decrease 2.9 Increase 2.9
MP before election

Frank Crean
Labor

Elected MP

Robert Pettiona
Labor

The 1951 Prahran state by-election was held on 16 June 1951 to elect the member for Prahran in the Victorian Legislative Assembly, following the resignation of Labor Party MP Frank Crean. Crean resigned to contest the federal election on 28 April 1951, where he was elected as the member for Melbourne Ports.

Robert Pettiona retained the seat for Labor despite a swing of 2.9% towards the Liberal and Country Party (LCP). He retained the seat at the 1952 state election but narrowly lost it to the LCP in 1955.

This was the final of three by-elections in Prahran held in a timeframe of six years, with by-elections also held in 1945 and 1949 (where Crean was elected).

Key events

  • 17 March 1951 – Frank Crean resigns
  • 11 April 1951 – Desmond McGinnes endorsed as LCP candidate
  • 12 May 1951 – Robert Pettiona endorsed as Labor candidate
  • 28 May 1951 – Candidate nominations close
  • 16 June 1951 – Polling day

Candidates

Candidates are listed in the order they appeared on the ballot.

Party Candidate Background
  Liberal and Country Desmond McGinnes Candidate for Melbourne at the 1949 federal election
  Labor Robert Pettiona President of the Federated Rubber and Allied Workers' Union of Australia

Labor

Robert Pettiona, the president of the Federated Rubber and Allied Workers' Union of Australia and the president of the Labor's Windsor branch, won the party's preselection. He had unsuccessfully ran for Labor preselection at the 1949 Prahran by-election. Pettiona three other candidates – H.E. Clarke (secretary of the Melbourne branch of the Waterside Workers' Federation), N. O'Donnell (public servant and Clerks' Union steward) and L.J. Stewart (Boot Trades Union organiser) – to win preselection.

Liberal and Country

The LCP chose Desmond McGinnes, a returned soldier, as its candidate. McGinnes had previously sought preselection at the 1949 Prahran by-election while serving as the president of the Prahran branch of the now-defunct Liberal Party. He also contested the 1949 federal election in the seat of Melbourne against Labor's Arthur Calwell.

Results

1951 Prahran state by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labor Robert Pettiona 10,922 52.7 −2.9
Liberal and Country Desmond McGinnes 9,803 47.3 +2.9
Total formal votes 20,725 99.0 0.0
Informal votes 207 1.0 0.0
Turnout 20,932 84.7 −9.5
Labor hold Swing −2.9

See also

References

  1. "Postal Votes for Prahran Election". The Age. 9 June 1951. p. 4. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  2. "24,000 TO VOTE IN BY-ELECTION". Border Morning Mail. 16 June 1951. p. 18. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  3. "Prahran poll 'held up'". The Argus. 20 March 1951. p. 3. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  4. "Francis Daniel (Frank) Crean (1916–2008)". Labour Australia. Archived from the original on 26 October 2024. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  5. "LABOR WINS PRAHRAN BY-ELECTION". Border Morning Mail. 18 June 1951. p. 3. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  6. "Lower Majority For Labour In Prahran". The West Australian. 18 June 1951. p. 2. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  7. "L.C.P. comeback is not gigantic task, says M.L.A." The Argus. 17 December 1952. p. 5. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  8. "Last-minute details of Saturday's State election". The Argus. 30 May 1955. p. 6. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  9. "PRAHRAN BY-ELECTION TODAY". The Argus. 18 August 1945. p. 10. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  10. "LABOR VICTORY IS CERTAIN IN PRAHRAN". Sunday Times. 23 January 1949. p. 1. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  11. "MR. CREAN IN FIGHT". The Argus. 19 March 1951. p. 24. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  12. "Labor prepares for by-election". The Argus. 27 April 1951. p. 7. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  13. "Two Contest Prahran Poll". The Age. 29 May 1951. p. 4. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  14. ^ "THE THIRTY-EIGHTH PARLIAMENT ELECTED 13 MAY 1950". Psephos: Adam Carr's Electoral Archive. Archived from the original on 25 March 2023. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  15. "Pettiona wins Prahran poll pre-selection". The Sun News-Pictorial. 14 May 1951. p. 9. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  16. "Labor Candidate For Prahran". The Sun News-Pictorial. 4 December 1948. p. 7. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  17. "By-Election on June 16". The Age. 9 May 1951. p. 3. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  18. "IN BY-ELECTION FIGHT". The Herald. 15 June 1951. p. 3. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  19. "By-Election for Prahran". The Age. 20 November 1948. p. 4. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  20. "Endorsed for Prahran Seat". The Age. 12 April 1951. p. 3. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
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