by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

for the seat of

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

in the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament Ho ...

was held on 12 November 2016. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of Nationals MP

Andrew Gee Andrew Gee may refer to: * Andrew Gee (rugby league) * Andrew Gee (politician) See also * Osher Günsberg, Australian television personality formerly known as Andrew G {{hndis, Gee, Andrew ...

on 6 May to contest the division of Calare at the 2016 federal election. The by-election was won by

Philip Donato Philip Donato (born 1972) is an Australian politician. He was a Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from November 2016 to December 2022, and subsequently an independent, representing the electora ...

of the

Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party The Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party (SFF) is an Australian political party. It primarily advocates for increased funding and services for rural and regional Australia, protecting the right to farm, enhancing commercial and recreational fishi ...

—the first seat won by the party in a state lower house. By-elections for the seats of

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

and

Wollongong Wollongong ( ), colloquially referred to as The Gong, is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near wa ...

were held on the same day.

Background

The federal seat of Calare was vacated at the 2016 federal election by the retirement of John Cobb, who had held the seat for the National Party since 2007, and the seat of

Parkes Parkes may refer to: * Sir Henry Parkes (1815–1896), Australian politician, one of the earliest and most prominent advocates for Australian federation Named for Henry Parkes * Parkes, New South Wales, a regional town * Parkes Observatory, a radi ...

before that. On 30 April 2016, state member for Orange

contested and won a Nationals preselection ballot against three other candidates. Although Orange was considered a safe Nationals seat with Gee holding the seat on a margin of 21.7 and the party having held the seat since 1947, a backlash against the Nationals was expected due in part to the Baird government's previous proposal to ban greyhound racing and the merger of a number of local councils.

Dates

Candidates

The eight candidates in ballot paper order are as follows:

Results

resigned to successfully contest Calare at the 2016 federal election. On election night, a notional two-party-preferred count was conducted between the Nationals and Labor, which was abandoned when it became apparent that the

would be in second place. A two-candidate-preferred check count completed on 16 November showed the SFFP ahead by 84 votes. When the official distribution of preferences took place on 17 November, the count ended with the Nationals in front by 66 votes. The Shooters Party contested the result, claiming an error in the count of about 100 votes. A review of the ballots found a bundle of votes had been wrongly applied in the distribution, and the result was a win for

by 55 votes. The National Party requested a recount, which was granted and was conducted Monday 21 November. The recount confirmed the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party's win by a margin of 50 votes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orange 2016 2016 elections in Australia New South Wales state by-elections 2010s in New South Wales