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1848 New South Wales colonial election

The 1848 New South Wales colonial election was held between 29 July and 2 August 1848. This election was for 24 seats in the New South Wales Legislative Council and it was conducted in 15 single-member constituencies, two 2-member constituencies and one 5-member constituency, all with a first past the post system. The Legislative Council was a hybrid system with 36 members, 24 elected, 6 appointed by virtue of their office (Colonial Secretary, Colonial Treasurer, Auditor-General, Attorney General, Commander of the forces and Collector of Customs)[1] and 6 nominated. The appointments and elections were for five year terms.[2][3][4][5]

1848 New South Wales colonial election
← 1843 29 July 1848 –
2 August 1848		 1851 →
24 seats in the New South Wales Legislative Council
Results of the election, showing winners in each seat. Seats without circles indicate the electorate returned one member.

The right to vote was limited to men aged over 21 who owned property worth at least £200 or occupied a house at £20 per year.[6] There was a higher requirement to be a member of the Council, owning property worth £2,000 or income from real estate of £100 per year.[1] If a man fulfilled these requirements in multiple constituencies, then he was allowed to cast a vote in each.[7] This was known as plural voting.[8]

Settlers of the Port Phillip District had wanted representation in the New South Wales Legislative Council for some time, achieving 6 representatives from 1843, "But the colonists were not satisfied with government from and by Sydney".[9][10] The campaign for independence for the district saw Earl Grey elected as the member for City of Melbourne. Earl Grey, the Colonial Secretary in London, had never set foot in the colony and there was no suggestion he met the property requirement for election.[11] A different tactic was adopted for the 5 member Port Phillip, with no candidates nominated on 27 July,[12] and a fresh writ was issued on 25 August for an election on 3 October.[13]

Key dates

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Date Event
25 to 27 July 1848 Nominations for candidates for the election.[14]
29 July and 2 August 1848 Polling days.[14]
15 May 1849 Opening of Legislative Council.[15]

Results

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Main article: Results of the 1848 New South Wales colonial election

New South Wales colonial election, 29 July 1848 – 2 August 1848 
Legislative Council
<< 1843–1851 >>

Enrolled voters
Votes cast 8,887 Turnout
Informal votes 0 Informal 0.00
Summary of votes by party
Party Primary votes % Swing Seats Change
Total 8,887     24  

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Flanagan, Roderick (1862). The History of New South Wales. Sampson Low, Son & Company. p. 60. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  2. ^ "Elected members of the Legislative Council (58)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 11 July 1843. p. 893. Retrieved 27 April 2019 – via Trove.
  3. ^ "Proclamation: appointed members of the Legislative Council (62)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 25 July 1843. p. 952. Retrieved 23 April 2019 – via Trove.
  4. ^ "Former Members". Members of Parliament. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Part 3 Members of the Legislative Council" (PDF). NSW Parliamentary Record. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
  6. ^ Darragh, Sean (August 2018). "175 years of voting: the 175th anniversary of the first parliamentary election on 1843" (PDF). Electoral Regulation Research Network and Democratic Audit of Australia working paper No 47.
  7. ^ "Australia's first election— 1843". The Argus. 29 September 1934. p. 6. Retrieved 29 October 2021 – via Trove.
  8. ^ "1856 to 1889 - Responsible Government and Colonial Development".
  9. ^ Coghlan, Timothy Augustine; Levey, George Collins (1911). "Victoria (Australia)" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 28 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 37–44.
  10. ^ M.M.H. Thompson (2006). The Seeds of Democracy: Early Elections in Colonial New South Wales. p. 151. ISBN 9781862876316.
  11. ^ "Contemporary opinions on the late election movements". Geelong Advertiser. 29 July 1848. p. 2. Retrieved 23 May 2019 – via Trove.
    "Apology for Earl Grey's election". The Port Phillip Patriot and Morning Advertiser. 31 July 1848. p. 2. Retrieved 26 May 2019 – via Trove.
  12. ^ "Melbourne". Geelong Advertiser. 27 July 1848. p. 4. Retrieved 26 May 2019 – via Trove.
  13. ^ "Writ of election: Port Phillip (91)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 25 August 1848. p. 1065. Retrieved 26 May 2019 – via Trove.
  14. ^ a b "Writs for a general election (68)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 27 June 1848. p. 799. Retrieved 26 May 2019 – via Trove.
  15. ^ "Legislative Council". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 August 1843. p. 2. Retrieved 29 October 2021 – via Trove.
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