Division of Maribyrnong
The Division of Maribyrnong is an Australian electoral division in the state of Victoria. It is located in the inner north-western suburbs of Melbourne. It covers the suburbs of Aberfeldie, Airport West, Avondale Heights, Braybrook, Essendon, Gowanbrae, Kealba, Keilor East, Maribyrnong, Moonee Ponds, Niddrie, St Albans and Sunshine North. Due to redistributions, the division has been slowly moving west. It originally included the suburbs of Footscray and North Melbourne. According to the 2011 census, Maribyrnong has the highest proportion of Catholics in any Commonwealth Electoral Division in Australia with 41.6% of the population.
| Maribyrnong Australian House of Representatives Division | |
|---|---|
 Division of Maribyrnong in Victoria, as of the 2019 federal election. | |
| Created | 1906 |
| MP | Bill Shorten |
| Party | Labor |
| Namesake | Maribyrnong River |
| Electors | 112,879 (2019) |
| Area | 64 km2 (24.7 sq mi) |
| Demographic | Inner Metropolitan |
History
The division was proclaimed at the redistribution of 13 July 1906, and was first contested at the 1906 election. The division was named after the Maribyrnong River, which runs through it. A safe Labor seat for most of the first half of the 20th century, it became a marginal Liberal seat for most of the 1950s and 1960s, in part due to the influence of the Democratic Labor Party. Labor retook the seat in 1969, and for most of the time since then, it has been a comfortably safe Labor seat.
Prominent former members include James Fenton, a minister under James Scullin and Joseph Lyons; Arthur Drakeford, a minister under John Curtin, Frank Forde and Ben Chifley; and Moss Cass, a minister under Gough Whitlam. The current member for Maribyrnong since the 2007 election is the former National Secretary of the Australian Workers' Union and former Opposition Leader Bill Shorten.
Members
| Image | Member | Party | Term | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) |
Samuel Mauger (1857–1936) |
Protectionist | 12 December 1906 – 26 May 1909 |
Previously held the Division of Melbourne Ports. Served as minister under Deakin. Lost seat | |
| Commonwealth Liberal | 26 May 1909 – 13 April 1910 | ||||
.jpg) |
James Fenton (1864–1950) |
Labor | 13 April 1910 – March 1931 |
Served as minister under Scullin and Lyons. Lost seat | |
| Independent | March 1931 – 7 May 1931 | ||||
| United Australia | 7 May 1931 – 15 September 1934 | ||||
 |
Arthur Drakeford (1878–1957) |
Labor | 15 September 1934 – 10 December 1955 |
Served as minister under Curtin, Forde and Chifley. Lost seat | |
 |
Philip Stokes (1906–1983) |
Liberal | 10 December 1955 – 25 October 1969 |
Lost seat | |
 |
Dr Moss Cass (1927–) |
Labor | 25 October 1969 – 4 February 1983 |
Served as minister under Whitlam. Retired | |
|
Alan Griffiths (1952–) |
Labor | 5 March 1983 – 29 January 1996 |
Served as minister under Hawke and Keating. Retired | |
|
Bob Sercombe (1949–) |
Labor | 2 March 1996 – 17 October 2007 |
Previously held the Victorian Legislative Assembly seat of Niddrie. Retired | |
 |
Bill Shorten (1967–) |
Labor | 24 November 2007 – present |
Served as minister under Rudd and Gillard. Served as Opposition Leader from 2013 to 2019. Incumbent |
Election results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | Bill Shorten | 47,487 | 47.05 | +4.99 | |
| Liberal | Christine Stow | 34,877 | 34.56 | +0.83 | |
| Greens | James Williams | 14,943 | 14.81 | −2.42 | |
| United Australia | MD Sarwar Hasan | 3,617 | 3.58 | +3.58 | |
| Total formal votes | 100,924 | 97.10 | +1.07 | ||
| Informal votes | 3,014 | 2.90 | −1.07 | ||
| Turnout | 103,938 | 92.09 | +2.72 | ||
| Two-party-preferred result | |||||
| Labor | Bill Shorten | 61,767 | 61.20 | +0.80 | |
| Liberal | Christine Stow | 39,157 | 38.80 | −0.80 | |
| Labor hold | Swing | +0.80 | |||
References
- Maribyrnong, VIC, Tally Room 2019, Australian Electoral Commission.