Edwin Thomas John Kerby (12 April 1885 – 5 July 1971) was an Australian politician.
Early life
Born in
Ballarat, Victoria
Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018.
Within months of Vic ...
, he attended Grenville College before becoming a mining engineer and electrical contractor.
Military service
He served in
World War I from 1914 to 1919. During his service he was awarded the 1914-15 Star,
British War Medal, and the Victory Medal.
Politician
In 1919, he was selected as the
Nationalist candidate for the
Australian House of Representatives seat of
Ballaarat, and defeated sitting
Labor MP
Charles McGrath by one vote, the closest result ever recorded for the House of Representatives. McGrath successfully challenged Kerby's election in the courts,
and a
by-election was held in 1920 and won by McGrath. Kerby became a businessman, focusing mainly on
aviation, and became prominent among
ex-service
A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military.
A military veteran that ...
men's causes; he held the leadership of the
RSL. He died in 1971.
Notes
References
Sporting Politician Seeks Championship: Major Kerby to Oppose Victoria's Best Scullers, ''The Herald'', (Friday, 5 March 1920), p.4.
1885 births
1971 deaths
Players of Australian handball
20th-century Australian politicians
Nationalist Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia
Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Ballarat
Members of the Australian House of Representatives
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