Jessie Mary Cooper (née McAndrew; 29 June 191428 December 1993) was elected as a

Liberal and Country League 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 ...

representative to the

South Australian Legislative Council The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the South Australian House of Assembly, ...

at the 1959 election. She was one of the first two women elected to the

Parliament of South Australia The Parliament of South Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of South Australia. It consists of the 47-seat House of Assembly ( lower house) and the 22-seat Legislative Council (upper house). General elections are ...

, along with

Joyce Steele Joyce Steele (29 May 1909 – 24 September 1991) was an Australian politician and one of the first two women elected to the Parliament of South Australia, the other being Jessie Cooper. Steele was elected to the House of Assembly and Coop ...

who was elected to the

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible gove ...

on the same day. She served until her retirement in 1979.

Pre-parliament

Jessie McAndrew was born and grew up in Sydney. She married Geoffrey D T Cooper, who was the youngest appointed Australian Lieutenant Colonel in World War II, commanding officer of the 2/27th, and a fourth generation member of the Adelaide Cooper family (

Coopers Brewery Coopers Brewery Limited, the largest Australian-owned brewery, is based in the Adelaide suburb of Regency Park. Coopers is known for making a variety of beers, the most famous of which are its Pale Ale and Sparkling Ale. In the twelve month ...

). They had one son who qualified M.B.B.S. and PhD and worked in immunology research before taking his father's seat on the Cooper's board of directors in 1989 and working as a general medical practitioner.James McAndrew Cooper MBBS, Ph.D., MA
www.bloomberg.com

Entering parliament

Ironically, South Australia was the last state to elect a female representative; at the 1896 election, South Australian

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...

became the first in Australia to be given the right to vote and the first in the world to be given the right to stand for election to Parliament. Cooper and

were elected to the

at the 1959 election. In 1959, attempts were still being made to prevent women entering Parliament. In an action brought by Frank Chapman and Arthur Cockington, Jessie Cooper and Margaret Scott (the Liberal party and Labor party candidates respectively, running for the Legislative Council in the South Australian election), had to show that they were "persons" in the sense intended by the State Constitution to be eligible to stand. The South Australian Supreme Court found in their favour and Jessie Cooper went on to win a seat in the Legislative Council. Reporters asked Joyce Steele and Jessie Cooper how they would combine their domestic duties with politics: Steele said that she would have to get a housekeeper to help with the housework, while Cooper replied that "... she would fit in her housework in the same way as a male member fitted in the running of an orchard or an accountant's office." (Sydney Morning Herald, 9 March 1959. p. 1) Molly Byrne was

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

's first female elected to the

, at the 1965 election, and the third behind Steele and Cooper.

References

External links

Jessie Cooper interviewed by Amy McGrath
ound recording, ca. 43 mins. 1 May 1980.
Jessie Cooper Study Grants for Mature Entry Women
Flinders University of South Australia.

State Library of South Australia. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Jessie 1914 births 1993 deaths Liberal and Country League politicians Members of the South Australian Legislative Council Politicians from Sydney 20th-century Australian politicians 20th-century Australian women politicians Women members of the South Australian Legislative Council

Pre-parliament

Entering parliament

See also

References

External links