Edgar Hughes Deg Russell (24 October 1890 – 31 March 1963) was an Australian politician. Russell was born Edgar Hughes Degenhardt, to Carl August Degenhardt and Margaret "Maggie" Degenhardt, née Mackay, at

Booleroo Centre Booleroo Centre is a town in the southern Flinders Ranges region of South Australia. The town is located in the Mount Remarkable District Council local government area, north of the state capital, Adelaide. At the 2006 census, Booleroo Centre ...

. He was educated at public schools at Booleroo Centre and

Port Germein Port Germein is a small sea-side town in the Australian state of South Australia located about north of the state capital of Adelaide city centre, Adelaide and about north of the city of Port Pirie on the eastern side of South Australia's Spenc ...

. His family subsequently moved to Port Pirie, where his father was a four-time mayor of the

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

. He was a bank clerk and manager for the

National Bank of Australia The National Bank of Australasia was a bank based in Melbourne. It was established in 1858, and in 1982 merged with the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney to form National Australia Bank. History In 1858, Alexander Gibb, a Melbourne gentleman ...

for twelve years in various towns before becoming a private accountant; he was also a certified local government auditor. He changed his surname to Russell, reportedly under pressure from the bank. In 1943, he was elected to the

Australian House of Representatives The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Senate. Its composition and powers are established in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia. The term of members of the ...

as the Labor member for

Grey Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

, defeating sitting United Australia Party member

Oliver Badman Albert Oliver Badman (18 December 1885 – 24 April 1977) was an Australian politician. Born in Yacka, South Australia, he was educated at state schools before becoming a wheat farmer and wheat breeder. He was a Methodist lay preacher and P ...

. A long-term delegate to party conferences, he had defeated

Australian Workers' Union The Australian Workers' Union (AWU) is one of Australia's largest and oldest trade unions. It traces its origins to unions founded in the pastoral and mining industries in the 1880s and currently has approximately 80,000 members. It has exerci ...

nominee Charles Davis for Labor preselection. Though describing himself as a moderate, he won with the support of more militant unions. Russell held the seat until his death in 1963.

References

Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Grey Members of the Australian House of Representatives 1890 births 1963 deaths 20th-century Australian politicians {{Australia-Labor-representative-stub