James Desmond Corcoran
AO (8 November 1928 – 3 January 2004) was an Australian
politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
, representing the
South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party. He was the 37th
Premier of South Australia
The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...
, serving between 15 February 1979 and 18 September 1979. He also served as the 1st
Deputy Premier of South Australia
Deputy or depute may refer to:
* Steward (office)
* Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy"
* Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including:
** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spain, ...
in 1968 and again from 1970 to 1979.
Early life
Born in
Millicent,
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 ...
, Corcoran joined the Labor Party in 1941. He enlisted in the
Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...
and fought in the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
(where he was
mentioned in dispatches
To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...
), as well as serving in
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
,
Malaya and
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu
Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea).
It is a simplified version of ...
.
Politics
Corcoran left the Army in 1961 and in
1962 was elected to 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 ...
, succeeding his father,
Jim Corcoran
James Ashley Corcoran (born 10 February 1949 in Sherbrooke, Quebec) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and former broadcaster.
Biography
Jim Corcoran was born in Sherbrooke, but went to high school and obtained his B.A. in Boston, Massachusetts ...
, as the member for
Millicent. Corcoran quickly impressed many within the Labor Party with his vigorous approach and his talent for administration. When the ALP won government in South Australia in 1965 for the first time in 32 years, Corcoran became Minister of Irrigation, Minister of Lands, and Minister of Repatriation. The new Premier,
Frank Walsh
Francis Henry Walsh (6 July 1897 – 18 May 1968) was the 34th Premier of South Australia from 10 March 1965 to 1 June 1967, representing the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party.
Early life
One of eight children, Walsh was b ...
, made Corcoran his chief political confidant. Like Walsh, Corcoran was a firm anti-communist and a devout Catholic. In fact, Walsh wanted Corcoran to be his successor, hoping thereby to foil the ambitions of Deputy Leader
Don Dunstan
Donald Allan Dunstan (21 September 1926 – 6 February 1999) was an Australian politician who served as the 35th premier of South Australia from 1967 to 1968, and again from 1970 to 1979. He was a member of the House of Assembly (MHA) for th ...
, whom Walsh resented and distrusted.
Following the septuagenarian Walsh's retirement in 1967, Corcoran challenged Dunstan for the ALP leadership, but lost by three votes. As a concession to Corcoran, Dunstan named him Deputy Leader, and created the post of
Deputy Premier of South Australia
Deputy or depute may refer to:
* Steward (office)
* Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy"
* Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including:
** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spain, ...
for him as well. In Dunstan's 1967-68 Cabinet, Corcoran dropped the Repatriation portfolio in favor of Immigration.
Labor lost its majority at the 1968 election, mainly due to losing two marginal rural seats. Corcoran himself was nearly defeated in his own seat, winning by just one vote over his
LCL rival
Martin Cameron
Martin Bruce Cameron (born 24 August 1935) is an Australian politician. He was a Liberal Party of Australia member of the Australian Senate from May to October 1969. He was later a member of the South Australian Legislative Council from 1971 ...
. Cameron protested and
a by-election was held later that year, with Corcoran winning more comfortably, leaving the new
Steele Hall
Raymond Steele Hall (born 30 November 1928) is a former Australian politician who served as the 36th Premier of South Australia from 1968 to 1970. He also served in the federal Parliament as a senator for South Australia from 1974 to 1977 and f ...
LCL government to rely on the casting vote of Independent Speaker
Tom Stott
Tom Cleave Stott Order of the British Empire, CBE (6 June 1899 – 21 October 1976) spent 37 years as an independent member of the South Australian House of Assembly, from 1933 to 1970. He served as Speaker of the South Australian House of Asse ...
.
Following the election, Corcoran became Deputy Opposition Leader under Dunstan; and upon Labor's victory at the 1970 election, he returned to the Deputy Premiership. He also served as Minister of Public Works and Minister of Marine and Harbours.
Over the next nine years, Dunstan and Corcoran made an unconventional but functional team. Corcoran privately opposed many of the social reforms Dunstan was implementing, such as liberalised
abortion
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...
and
homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...
laws. In addition, Corcoran disliked Dunstan's glamorous image and fondness for the arts. A conservative dresser, Corcoran did not at all share Dunstan's enthusiasm for wearing casual clothes on public occasions. Nevertheless, the two men felt a wary respect for one another and managed to maintain a working relationship. Behind the scenes, Dunstan sometimes found Corcoran's plain-speaking style useful, in order to control others within the ALP. Meanwhile, Dunstan remained the public face of the Labor government over the next decade.
When Corcoran's majority in Millicent was redistributed away ahead of the
1975 election, Corcoran transferred to the Adelaide-area seat of
Coles. However, when a redistribution made that seat, in turn, unwinnable before the
1977 election, Corcoran transferred to nearby
Hartley.
By early 1979, Dunstan's health had deteriorated to the point that he could not continue in office, and he resigned on 15 February. Corcoran was elected his successor, thus finally achieving his dream of becoming Premier. He also served as
Treasurer
A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance.
Government
The treasury o ...
and Minister for Ethnic Affairs. Spurred by positive opinion polls, Corcoran called a snap election two years before it was due (without pre-informing the party apparatus) in the hope that he would gain a mandate of his own. The election campaign was plagued by problems; the state's main newspaper, ''
The Advertiser'', openly favored the Liberal campaign.
At the election, Labor suffered an 8% swing against it and lost to the Liberals under
David Tonkin
David Oliver Tonkin AO (20 July 1929 – 2 October 2000) was an Australian politician who served as the 38th Premier of South Australia from 18 September 1979 to 10 November 1982. He was elected to the House of Assembly seat of Bragg at the 1 ...
. After the election, Corcoran soon resigned from the Labor leadership and was succeeded by the much younger
John Bannon
John Charles Bannon (7 May 1943 – 13 December 2015) was an Australian politician and academic. He was the 39th Premier of South Australia, leading the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party from a single term in opposition ba ...
, whose urbane style and academic background brought him a lot closer to Dunstan than to Corcoran. In 1982, Bannon easily defeated Tonkin and led Labor back into government. Corcoran did not run in that election.
Death
Corcoran died in 2004, aged 75, and was survived by his wife, Carmel, their eight children and twelve grandchildren.
References
* Doherty, E., Heggen, B. & Pippos, C. "Former premier Corcoran dies", ''Sunday Mail'', p 2, 4 January 2004.
* Jory, R. "SA premier put his own mark on office", ''The Courier-Mail'', p. 22, 2 February 2004.
* Kelton, G. "Pragmatic man of the people not forgotten", ''The Advertiser'', p. 18, 5 January 2004.
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Corcoran, Des
Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of South Australia
Premiers of South Australia
Deputy Premiers of South Australia
Treasurers of South Australia
Officers of the Order of Australia
People from Millicent, South Australia
20th-century Australian politicians
1928 births
2004 deaths
Deaths from cancer in South Australia
Australian military personnel of the Korean War