1904 Victorian state election

The 1904 Victorian state election was held in the Australian state of Victoria on 1 June 1904 to elect 67 members to the state's Legislative Assembly.

1904 Victorian state election

1 June 1904 (1904-06-01)
All 67 seats in the Victorian Legislative Assembly 34 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party   Leader Thomas Bent Frederick Bromley Party National Citizens Reform League Labour Leader since 1904 1904 Leader's seat Brighton Carlton Last election 47 seats 12 seats Seats won 35 seats 17 seats Seat change 12 5 Percentage 36.14 32.55 Swing 5.93% 14.54%
Premier before election Thomas Bent National Citizens Reform League Elected Premier Thomas Bent National Citizens Reform League

It was the first election to be held in Victoria since the passing of the Constitution Act 1903 (also known as the "Constitution Reform Act"), which reduced the number of seats in the Legislative Assembly from 95 to 67 and removed all two-member electorates. It also created three new electorates representing public and railways officers: the Electoral province for Public Officers and Railway Officers the "Electoral district for Public Officers" and a two-member "Electoral district for Railway Officers". Members of the public service had previously not been eligible to stand as candidates without first resigning. Under these changes, they could stand while a state employee, and if successful in winning a seat, would have a leave of absence while sitting as an MP.

Background

Ministerialists were a group of members of parliament who supported a government in office but were not bound by tight party discipline. Ministerialists represented loose pre-party groupings who held seats in state parliaments up to 1914. Such members ran for office as independents or under a variety of political labels but saw themselves as linked to other candidates by their support for a particular premier or government.

Thomas Bent was elected on 16 February 1904 leader of the Commonwealth Liberal Party, replacing Premier William Irvine who went into federal politics, and went into the election as the incumbent Premier. At the June 1904 election Bent won a comfortable majority with 35 of the 67 seats, and the Labour Party became the second largest party in the Assembly with 17 seats.

Results

Legislative Assembly (FPTP)

Party			Votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
	Reform League Ministerialists		55,426	36.14	−5.93	35	12
	Labour		49,922	36.14	+14.54	17	5
	Liberal Oppositionists		37,422	24.40	+6.31	12	3
	Independent Ministerialists		7,554	4.93	−8.52	2	5
	Independent Labour		2,108	1.37	−0.50	1	1
	Independent		945	0.62	+0.62	0
Formal votes			153,377	99.03	−0.62
Informal votes			1,498	0.97	+0.62
Total			154,875			67
Registered voters / turnout			277,006	63.38	−2.03

See also

• Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, 1904–1907