Elections were held in the
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
of
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
on 18 March 1939 to elect all 50 members to the
Legislative Assembly. The
Labor Party, led by
Premier
Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier.
A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
John Willcock
John Collings Willcock (9 August 1879 – 7 June 1956) was the 15th Premier of Western Australia, serving from 1936 until 1945. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party.
Early life
John Willcock was born at Frogmoor (now Frogmore), New So ...
, won a third term in office against the
Country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...
and
Nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
parties, led by
Opposition Leader
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 ...
Charles Latham and
Robert Ross McDonald
Sir Robert Ross McDonald QC (25 January 1888 – 25 March 1964) was an Australian politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1933 to 1950, representing the seat of West Perth. He served as leader of the ...
respectively.
Results
The election was notable for the lack of change to the status quo. Only one member—former Speaker
Michael Troy
Michael Francis Troy (October 3, 1940 – August 3, 2019) was an American competitive swimmer, a two-time Olympic champion, and world record-holder in three events.
The peak of Troy's swimming career occurred between 1959 and 1960 while he was ...
, who had been in the Assembly continuously since 1904—opted to retire, being replaced in his seat of
Mount Magnet
Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest.
Mount or Mounts may also refer to:
Places
* Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England
* Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...
by fellow Labor member
Lucien Triat. Labor's
Bill Hegney
William Hegney (11 January 1896 – 13 October 1982) was an Australian politician who was a Labor Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1939 to 1968. He served as a minister in the government of Albert Hawke.
Heg ...
gained the seat of
Pilbara
The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a glo ...
from two-term Nationalist MLA
Frank Welsh, whilst the Nationalist member since 1914 for
North Perth,
James MacCallum Smith
James MacCallum Smith (26 April 1868 – 6 August 1939) was an Australian politician, newspaper proprietor and stock breeder. He lobbied unsuccessfully for many years for the secession of Western Australia from the Federation of Australia.
Bio ...
, was defeated by independent Nationalist
Arthur Abbott
Arthur Valentine Rutherford Abbott (14 February 1892 – 10 October 1975) was an Australian lawyer and politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1939 to 1956. He was a minister in the government of Sir ...
(who joined the party some years later).
Elsewhere, the only change was the exit of one Independent member—
Clarence Doust
Clarence Isaac Doust (3 August 1885 – 19 April 1961) was an Australian farmer and politician who was an independent member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1936 to 1939, representing the seat of Nelson.
Doust was born i ...
in
Nelson
Nelson may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey
* ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers
* ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
, who was defeated by his Nationalist predecessor
John Henry Smith
John Henry Smith (September 18, 1848 – October 13, 1911) was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (LDS Church), Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the First Presidency (LDS Church), First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of ...
after one term—and the entry of another from
Irwin-Moore,
Claude Barker
Claude Osmonde Barker (1897 – 1961) was an Australian politician. He was the Independent member for Irwin-Moore in the Western Australian Legislative Assembly
The Western Australian Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the ...
, replacing Country member
Percy Ferguson
Percy Douglas Ferguson (23 January 1880 – 2 June 1952) was an Australian politician. He was a Country Party member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1927 to 1939, representing Moore until 1930 and Irwin-Moore thereafter. H ...
.
: 265,987 electors were enrolled to vote at the election, but 10 of the 50 seats were uncontested—4 Labor seats representing 9,414 enrolled voters, 2 Nationalist seats representing 11,396 voters and 4 Country seats representing 16,614 voters.
See also
*
*
References
{{Western Australian elections
Elections in Western Australia
1939 elections in Australia
1930s in Western Australia
March 1939 events