John Don (10 September 1918 – 1 April 2013) was an Australian politician. He was born in Ballarat to solicitor Joseph Edwin Don and Mary Minnie Cross. He attended various state schools before studying at

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

he served in the Middle East and later the Philippines, attaining the rank of major and being awarded the

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

. On 9 March 1943, he married Joan Yvonne Davies, with whom he had three daughters. In 1945, Don was elected to the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presidin ...

as the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

member for

Elsternwick Elsternwick is an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Glen Eira local government area. Elsternwick recorded a population of 10,887 at the 2 ...

, while he was still studying law (he would be admitted as a solicitor in 1954). He was briefly a minister without portfolio in June 1950. A supporter of

Thomas Hollway Thomas Tuke Hollway (2 October 1906 – 30 July 1971) was the 36th Premier of Victoria, and the first to be born in the 20th century. He held office from 1947 to 1950, and again for a short period in 1952. He was originally a member and the lead ...

, he was one of the rebels who voted against the McDonald Country Party government in 1952 and served as Minister of Transport and Labour in the seventy-hour ministry that resulted. Expelled from the Liberal Party, he was defeated as an Electoral Reform League candidate in 1955. A solicitor after leaving parliament, he later rejoined the Liberal Party. Don died in 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Don, John 1918 births 2013 deaths Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Victorian Liberal Party members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Vice-Presidents of the Board of Land and Works Australian Members of the Order of the British Empire Australian solicitors University of Melbourne alumni Australian Army officers Australian Army personnel of World War II Politicians from Ballarat Ministers for Labour (Victoria)