2014 Newcastle state by-election

A by-election for the seat of Newcastle in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly was held on 25 October 2014.[1][2] The by-election was triggered by the resignation of Liberal-turned-independent MP Tim Owen, who won the seat at the 2011 election with a 36.7 percent primary and 52.6 percent two-party-preferred vote.

The previous New South Wales by-election had seen a 26-point two-party-preferred swing to Labor.

Background

Newcastle, located in the traditional Labor heartland of the Hunter Region, was won for the Liberals by Owen at the 2011 election on a swing of 26.9 points.[3] Owen was the first Liberal to win the seat since its re-creation in 1927. Before Owen's win, Newcastle had only been out of Labor hands twice in its current incarnation; independent George Keegan held it from 1988 to 1991, and Bryce Gaudry sat as an independent for part of 2007 after losing Labor preselection.

In May 2014, after admitting that he had probably received illegal donations in the 2011 campaign, Owen announced he would not re-nominate for Newcastle in the next state election.[4] On 6 August 2014, the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption heard evidence that illegal donations from Newcastle-area developers had funded Owen's campaign, prompting the commission's counsel to question the validity of Owen's victory.[5] Following this disclosure, Owen resigned from the Liberal Party to sit as an independent pending the results of the inquiry.[6] A week later, on 12 August, Owen admitted he had lied to the ICAC about returning one of the illicit donations. He resigned from parliament hours later under pressure.[7]

Dates
Date Event[8]
3 October 2014 Writ of election issued by the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly and close of electoral rolls.[9]
Noon, 8 October 2014 Close of nominations for party-endorsed candidates
Noon, 9 October 2014 Close of nominations for other candidates
25 October 2014 Polling day, between the hours of 8 am and 6 pm

Candidates

The eight candidates in ballot paper order are as follows:[8]

Candidate nominations
  Socialist Alliance Steve O'Brien Socialist campaigner and unionist.[8]
  Labor Party Tim Crakanthorp Newcastle City Council Councillor.[8]
  Greens Michael Osborne Newcastle City Council Former Deputy Lord Mayor.[8]
  Independent Jacqueline Haines Contested Lord Mayoral election in 2012.[8]
  Jennifer Stefanac Palmer United Party candidate.[8]
  Independent Karen Howard Graduate and Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.[8]
  Christian Democratic Party Milton Caine Has contested seats for 30 years as a Christian Democrat, Liberal, and independent.[8]
  Independent Brian Buckley Clare Contested federal seat of Lyne for Katter's Australian Party at previous election.[8]

The Liberals declined to contest the by-election, and also declined to field a candidate in the by-election in Charlestown held on the same day. NSW Liberal director Tony Nutt stated that the Liberals would not contest either by-election "as an explicit act of atonement" for the revelations, and Premier Mike Baird said that the Liberals didn't deserve to contest the seats while they were "getting (their) house in order."[1][2] According to ABC election analyst Antony Green, it was the first known occasion of a sitting government in NSW opting not to contest by-elections in seats that it previously held.[10]

Results
2014 Newcastle by-election [11][12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labor Tim Crakanthorp 15,253 36.9 +6.3
Independent Karen Howard 10,796 26.1 +26.1
Greens Michael Osborne 8,236 19.9 +5.1
Independent Jacqueline Haines 3,019 7.3 +7.3
Jennifer Stefanac 1,332 3.2 +3.2
Socialist Alliance Steve O'Brien 1,086 2.6 +1.0
Christian Democrats Milton Caine 834 2.0 +1.2
Independent Brian Buckley Clare 762 1.8 +1.8
Total formal votes 41,318 94.7 −2.5
Informal votes 2,327 5.3 +2.5
Turnout 43,645 80.6 −11.8
Two-candidate-preferred result
Labor Tim Crakanthorp 18,785 58.7 +11.2
Independent Karen Howard 13,243 41.3 +41.3
Labor gain from Liberal  

See also

References
  1. "NSW Premier Mike Baird apologises for Liberal Party after horror week at ICAC". Sunday Telegraph. Australia. 17 August 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  2. "Liberal Party apologises to NSW voters after more MPs resign over corruption allegations". The Sun-Herald. 17 August 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  3. Green, Antony (5 April 2011). "Newcastle". NSW Votes 2011. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  4. Gordon, Jason, & Carr, Matt (2014-05-12). "Newcastle Liberal MP Tim Owen says he will not contest next election". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2014-05-12.
  5. Gerathy, Sarah (6 August 2014). "Two NSW Liberal MPs stand aside from the party following ICAC revelations on campaign funding". ABC News. Australia. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  6. McClymont, Kate; Whitbourn, Michaela (6 August 2014). "ICAC hears that Liberal party boss Brian Loughnane knew of developer donations going through federal channels". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  7. Nicholls, Sean (12 August 2014). "Newcastle MP Tim Owen and Charlestown MP Andrew Cornwell resign from NSW Parliament following ICAC donations inquiry". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 12 August 2014.
  8. Green, Antony. "2014 Newcastle by-election". ABC News.
  9. "Writ of election: Newcastle" (PDF). Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 3 October 2014. p. 3382. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  10. Green, Antony (17 August 2014). "Election blog: NSW Liberal Party Chooses not to Contest Looming By-elections". ABC News. Retrieved 17 August 2014.
  11. "2014 Newcastle by-election: first preference votes". Electoral Commission New South Wales. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  12. "2014 Newcastle by-election: check count TCP results". Electoral Commission New South Wales. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
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