COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA SEVENTH PARLIAMENT ==================================================================== HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ==================================================================== BY-ELECTIONS ==================================================================== CORANGAMITE, Vic ==================================================================== South-west Victoria: Ararat, Camperdown, Colac, Warrnambool -------------------------------------------------------------------- 14 December 1918, following the death of Hon Chester Manifold -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1917 two-party majority: Nationalist over ALP 10.4 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Enrolled voters: 34,895 -05.0 Votes cast: 25,553 73.2 -11.4 Informal votes: 516 02.0 +00.2 Formal votes: 25,040 98.0 -00.2 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Candidate Party Votes % Swing -------------------------------------------------------------------- Francis Coldham 1,174 04.7 William Gibson VFU 6,604 26.4 George Knox + Nat 5,737 22.9 -37.5 Thomas Leaper 895 03.6 James Scullin ALP 10,630 42.5 +02.9 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 25,040 -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Coldham was an independent Nationalist candidate. 2. Knox was Vic MLA for Upper Yarra 1927-45, Scoresby 1945-60. 3. Leaper was a Returned Services Nationalist candidate. 4. Scullin was member for Corangamite 1910-13. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 2nd count: Leaper's 895 votes distributed -------------------------------------------------------------------- Coldham 112 12.6 1,286 05.1 Gibson 210 23.5 6,814 27.2 Knox 471 52.8 6,208 24.8 Scullin 102 11.4 10,732 42.9 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 895 25,040 -------------------------------------------------------------------- 3rd count: Coldham's 1,286 voted distributed -------------------------------------------------------------------- Gibson 604 47.0 7,418 29.6 Knox 647 50.3 6,855 27.4 Scullin 35 02.7 10,767 43.0 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 1,286 25,040 -------------------------------------------------------------------- 4th count: Knox's 6,855 votes distributed -------------------------------------------------------------------- GIBSON 6,678 97.4 14,096 56.3 Scullin 177 02.6 10,944 43.7 -------------------------------------------------------------------- Total 6,855 25,040 06.3 04.1 to ALP -------------------------------------------------------------------- The VFU's majority over the ALP is compared with the Nationalist majority over the ALP in 1917. -------------------------------------------------------------------- William Gerrand Gibson (1869-1955): Elected 1918 By Born: 20 May 1869, Gisborne, Victoria. Career: Primary education. Farmer. Prominent Victorian Farmers Union. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. This by-election was the first occasion on which preferential voting was used for an election to the federal parliament. Had the old system been continued, the ALP would have won. Preferential voting was introduced to prevent this possibility in three-sided contests. 2. Gibson is regarded as the first Country Party member of the House of Representatives. --------------------------------------------------------------------