2015 Davenport state by-election

A by-election for the seat of Davenport in the South Australian House of Assembly was held on 31 January 2015. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of Liberal Party of Australia MP and former Liberal leader Iain Evans, who retained the seat at the 2014 election on a 58.1 (−2.8) percent two-party-preferred vote.[1][2][3] Liberal Sam Duluk went on to win the seat despite a five-point two-party swing, turning the historically safe seat of Davenport in to a marginal for the first time.[4]

Electoral district of Davenport in the southern metropolitan area of Adelaide. Suburbs include Bedford Park, Bellevue Heights, Blackwood, Craigburn Farm, Coromandel Valley, Eden Hills, Flagstaff Hill, Glenalta, Hawthorndene and parts of Belair, Darlington, O'Halloran Hill, Upper Sturt.

The by-election was held on the same day as the 2015 Queensland state election.

Dates
Date Event[5]
3 January 2015 Writ of election issued by the Governor
13 January 2015 Close of electoral rolls
16 January 2015 Close of nominations
31 January 2015 Polling day, between the hours of 8 am and 6 pm

Candidates
5 candidates in ballot paper order[5]
  Liberal Party of Australia Sam Duluk Accountant. Liberal candidate for seat of Fisher at the previous election.[5]
  Family First Party Natasha Edmonds Family First candidate for Davenport at the previous election.[5]
  Independent Australian Democrats Jeanie Walker Involved in property investing and management and is an Aboriginal Family Violence Case Manager. Contested the 2014 Fisher by-election.[5]
  Australian Labor Party Mark Ward City of Mitcham councillor for last eight years, has served as Deputy Mayor. Urrbrae Agricultural High School teacher. Centennial Park Cemetery board member.[5]
  Greens Jody Moate Retail sector worker. Volunteers with numerous community groups.[5]

Result
Davenport state by-election, 31 January 2015[6][7][8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Sam Duluk 9,740 46.9 −4.1
Labor Mark Ward 6,927 33.4 +4.8
Greens Jody Moate 2,584 12.5 −2.8
Family First Natasha Edmonds 816 3.9 −1.2
Independent Australian Democrats Jeanie Walker 685 3.3 +3.3
Total formal votes 20,752 97.1 −0.7
Informal votes 613 2.9 +0.7
Turnout 21,365 85.7 −7.7
Two-party-preferred result
Liberal Sam Duluk 11,021 53.1 −5.0
Labor Mark Ward 9,731 46.9 +5.0
Liberal hold Swing−5.0

Liberal Sam Duluk won the seat with a -4.1 point swing, with the Liberal party failing to win outright and relying on preferences.[4] South Australian Newspoll at the time of the Davenport by-election recorded a statewide seven percent two-party swing from Liberal to Labor. ABC election analyst Antony Green described the Davenport by-election as "another poor result for the South Australian Liberal Party"[9] following the 2014 Fisher by-election which saw Labor go from minority to majority government following a 7.3 percent two-party swing.[10] As with the Fisher by-election, much of the anti-Liberal swing was attributed to the unpopularity of then Prime Minister Tony Abbott, and a remark from then Defence Minister David Johnston several days before the Fisher by-election that he wouldn't trust South Australia's Australian Submarine Corporation to "build a canoe".[11][12][13] Additionally, just a couple of days before the Davenport by-election, Abbott's infamous knighting of Prince Philip occurred.[14][15][16]

See also

References
  1. "South Australia set for two by-elections, in Fisher and Davenport state electorates". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 20 October 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  2. Speaker Michael Atkinson defends decision to separate two SA by-elections: ABC 21 October 2014
  3. Davenport by-election date in South Australia set for January 31: ABC 13 November 2014
  4. Liberals withstand swing to win by-election in South Australian seat of Davenport: ABC 31 January 2015
  5. 2015 Davenport by-election: Antony Green ABC
  6. Distribution of preferences, 2015 Davenport by-election: ECSA
  7. 2015 Davenport by-election result: Antony Green ABC
  8. 2015 Davenport by-election result: ECSA
  9. 2015 Davenport by-election commentary: Antony Green ABC
  10. Fisher by-election win for Labor gives Weatherill Government majority in SA: ABC 13 December 2014
  11. Defence Minister says he 'wouldn't trust' Australian Submarine Corporation to build a canoe: ABC 25 November 2014
  12. Is Tony Abbott the hazard for Liberals in Fisher by-election?: The Advertiser 30 November 2014
  13. Abbott government forced into sub-mission after shock loss in South Australia: Sydney Morning Herald 9 December 2014
  14. Davenport by-election: Tony Abbott's decision to knight Prince Phillip [sic] could affect voters: ABC 29 January 2015
  15. Large swing to Labor at SA by-election another warning to PM Abbott: Nine News 2 February 2015
  16. Tony Abbott reels from Queensland election debacle: Financial Review 2 February 2015
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