Don Dobie

James Donald Mathieson Dobie (28 July 1927 – 25 November 1996) was an Australian politician. Born in Glasgow in Scotland, he migrated to Australia as a child and was educated at Brisbane Grammar School, the University of Melbourne, and Columbia University in New York. He then became an economist with a private bank until 1966, when he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives for the Liberal Party, defeating Labor member Les Johnson for the seat of Hughes. A redistribution ahead of the 1969 election erased Dobie's majority and gave Labor a notional eight-percent majority—technically making it a safe Labor seat on paper. Believing this made Hughes unwinnable—especially with Johnson priming for a rematch—Dobie transferred to the new seat of Cook, created mostly out of the more Liberal-friendly eastern portion of Hughes. This move proved prescient, as Johnson retook Hughes for Labor on a large swing while Dobie narrowly won Cook.


Don Dobie
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Hughes
In office
26 November 1966  25 October 1969
Preceded byLes Johnson
Succeeded byLes Johnson
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Cook
In office
25 October 1969  2 December 1972
Preceded byNew seat
Succeeded byRay Thorburn
In office
13 December 1975  29 January 1996
Preceded byRay Thorburn
Succeeded byStephen Mutch
Personal details
Born(1927-07-28)28 July 1927
Glasgow, Scotland
Died25 November 1996(1996-11-25) (aged 69)
NationalityScottish Australian
Political partyLiberal Party of Australia
Alma materUniversity of Melbourne
Columbia University
OccupationEconomist

On 20 August 1971, he was appointed Assistant Minister assisting the Prime Minister, William McMahon. In 1972, he was defeated by Labor's Ray Thorburn, but retook the seat in 1975 and was returned at every election until his retirement in 1996. He died later the same year.[1]

References

  1. Carr, Adam (2008). "Australian Election Archive". Psephos, Adam Carr's Election Archive. Archived from the original on 20 July 2007. Retrieved 2008-05-17.
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by
Les Johnson
Member for Hughes
1966–1969
Succeeded by
Les Johnson
Preceded by
new seat
Member for Cook
1969–1972
Succeeded by
Ray Thorburn
Preceded by
Ray Thorburn
Member for Cook
1975–1996
Succeeded by
Stephen Mutch


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