State elections were held in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

on 6 April 1918. All 46 seats in the

South Australian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assembly was creat ...

were up for election. The incumbent Liberal Union government led by Premier of South Australia Archibald Peake defeated the opposition

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...

led by

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

Andrew Kirkpatrick. Each district elected multiple members, with voters casting multiple votes. The 1918 election was the first at which any women stood as candidates.

Selina Siggins Selina Sarah Elizabeth Siggins (née Charters, previously Anderson; 12 May 1878 – 30 November 1964) was an Australian political activist who became the first woman to stand for the Australian House of Representatives. She ran as an independent ...

(

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

) and

Jeanne Young Sarah Jane Young (; known as Jeanne Forster Young; 1 July 1866 – 11 April 1955) was an Australian political reformer. Born at Unley in Adelaide to smith John Forster and Sarah Jane, ''née'' Jarvis, she received a private education before beco ...

( Sturt) both ran unsuccessfully as independents.

Background

The

Crawford Vaughan Crawford Vaughan (14 July 1874 – 15 December 1947) was an Australian politician, and the Premier of South Australia from 1915 to 1917. He was a member of the South Australian House of Assembly from 1905 to 1918, representing Torrens (19 ...

Labor government fell in July 1917 due to the

Australian Labor Party split of 1916 The Australian Labor Party split of 1916 occurred following severe disagreement within the Australian Labor Party over the issue of proposed World War I conscription in Australia. Labor Prime Minister of Australia Billy Hughes had, by 1916, bec ...

conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...

, and was replaced by a Peake Liberal

minority government A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...

. This was replaced by the Peake Liberal- National Labor coalition government in August 1917. Peake initially formed a ministry of liberals, but after complaints from National Labor who had supported him in the confidence motion, he included three National Labor members.

, National Labor leader, did not take a place in the ministry. The Liberal and National Labor parties went to the election in coalition. The first new parties emerged since the two-party system was introduced from the 1910 state election − the

Farmers and Settlers Association The Farmers' and Settlers' Association of New South Wales was an umbrella organisation of farmers' and selectors' associations in New South Wales, founded in 1893. History The Association was formed in 1893 as the outcome of a conference held in C ...

(F&S),

Single Tax A single tax is a system of taxation based mainly or exclusively on one tax, typically chosen for its special properties, often being a tax on land value. The idea of a single tax on land values was proposed independently by John Locke and Bar ...

(ST) and the Farmers and Producers Country Party (FPCP). The United Labor Party was renamed to the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party on 14 September 1917.What's in a name?: Trove 15 Sep 1917
/ref>

Results

Notes

References

History of South Australian elections 1857-2006, volume 1: ECSAState and federal election results
in Australia since 1890 {{South Australian elections Elections in South Australia 1918 elections in Australia 1910s in South Australia April 1918 events

Background

Results

See also

Notes

References