The 1843 New South Wales colonial election was held between 15 June and 3 July 1843. This election was for 24 seats in the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...

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 In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...

system. This included 6 members in what became the

Colony of Victoria In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

and a single member for the coast north of Newcastle. The Legislative Council was a hybrid system with 36 members, 24 elected, 6 appointed by virtue of their office ( Colonial Secretary,

Colonial Treasurer Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

Auditor-General A comptroller (pronounced either the same as ''controller'' or as ) is a management-level position responsible for supervising the quality of accounting and financial reporting of an organization. A financial comptroller is a senior-level executi ...

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

, Commander of the forces and Collector of Customs) and 6 nominated. The appointments and elections were for five year terms. 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. 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. If a man fulfilled these requirements in multiple constituencies, then he was allowed to cast a vote in each. This was known as plural voting. This was the first election held and the first form of representative government in Australia. The Governor retained considerable power, including the power to disallow bills and in appointing 12 of the 36 seats. As government appointments were expected to support the government, it only required the support of 6 of the 24 elected members to pass any bill. The election was marked by a riot at Sydney involving 4-500 men, which resulted in a fatality, and a smaller riot at Windsor.

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References

{{New South Wales elections Elections in New South Wales New South Wales Colonial Election, 1843 New South Wales Colonial Election, 1843 New South Wales Colonial Election, 1843 1840s in New South Wales

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