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1860 New South Wales colonial election

The 1860 New South Wales colonial election was held between 6 December and 24 December 1860. This election was for all of the 72 seats in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly and it was conducted in 52 single-member constituencies, six 2-member constituencies and two 4-member constituencies, all with a first past the post system.[2] Suffrage was limited to adult white males. This was the first election after the separation of Queensland in December 1859.

1860 New South Wales colonial election
← 1859 6 December 1860 –
24 December 1860		 1864–65 →
All 72 seats in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
37 Assembly seats were needed for a majority
  First party Second party
 
Leader John Robertson William Forster
Party Government Opposition
Leader's seat Upper Hunter Queanbeyan
Seats won 38[1] 11[1]
Results of the election, showing winners in each seat. Seats without member charts indicate the electorate returned one member.
Premier before election

John Robertson

 Elected Premier

Charles Cowper

The previous parliament of New South Wales was dissolved on 10 November 1860 by the Governor, Sir William Denison, on the advice of the Premier, John Robertson.

While there was no recognisable party structure at this election, the Sydney Morning Herald identified three main factions in the Legislative Assembly. 38 members were considered to support the government, 11 were in opposition, and a further 23 that supported Henry Parkes or were uncommitted to supporting the government.[1]

Although Robertson won the election, he relinquished the premiership to Charles Cowper to concentrate on passing land reform bills as Secretary of Lands.

Key dates

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Date Event
10 November 1860 The Legislative Assembly was dissolved, and writs were issued by the Governor to proceed with an election.
5 December to 21 December 1860 Nominations for candidates for the election closed.
6 December to 24 December 1860 Polling days.
10 January 1861 Opening of new Parliament.

Results

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Main article: Results of the 1860 New South Wales colonial election

New South Wales colonial election, 6 December 1860 – 24 December 1860 [2]
Legislative Assembly
<< 1859–1864–65 >>

Enrolled voters 91,410
Votes cast 46,308 Turnout 42.91 [a] –9.63
Informal votes 48 Informal 0.17 +0.09
Summary of votes by party
Party Primary votes % Swing Seats Change
Total 46,308     72  
  1. ^ There were 17 uncontested districts and turnout is based on the roll of 66,581 for the contested districts.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "THE ELECTIONS". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. XLII, no. 7039. New South Wales, Australia. 29 December 1860. p. 4. Retrieved 31 May 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. ^ a b c Green, Antony. "1860 election totals". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 21 September 2019.

See also

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