New South Wales state election, 2015
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A general election for the 56th Parliament of New South Wales (NSW) was held on Saturday 28 March 2015. Members were elected to all 93 seats in the Legislative Assembly using optional preferential voting. Members were also elected to 21 of the 42 seats in the Legislative Council using optional preferential proportional representation voting. The election was conducted by the New South Wales Electoral Commission. The one-term incumbent Liberal/
National National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
Coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...
Government led by
Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
Mike Baird and
Deputy Premier A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...
Troy Grant was re-elected to a second four-year term with a slightly reduced majority in the Legislative Assembly, where government is formed. The main Opposition Labor Party under Luke Foley won an increased share of the vote in most districts, though the party lost ground in some key races, including Foley's seat of
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
. It managed to take 14 seats off the Coalition, mostly in areas of Labor "heartland" lost to the Liberals during the landslide in 2011. Most notably, Labor regained seats in west Sydney, the Central Coast and the lower
Hunter Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
. Baird had campaigned on a controversial plan to lease 49 per cent of the state-owned electricity distribution network (known as the "poles and wires") to deliver an ambitious transport and social infrastructure program. Labor, supported by the state's union movement, ran on an anti-privatisation platform, while also promising a moratorium on coal-seam gas (CSG) extraction, and encouraging voters to register a protest vote against the Liberal-led Coalition federal government. Although the poles-and-wires proposal was poorly received in opinion polls, Baird himself was widely liked by the electorate. Candidate nominations closed on 12 March and early voting began on the 16th of March. The election was notable for NSW in that: *this was the first time since
1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...
that a non-Labor government had been reelected with an overall majority *one of the main party leaders, Labor's Foley, was not a member of the Legislative Assembly prior to the election *the
Greens Greens may refer to: *Leaf vegetables such as collard greens, mustard greens, spring greens, winter greens, spinach, etc. Politics Supranational * Green politics * Green party, political parties adhering to Green politics * Global Greens * Europ ...
won three seats in the Assembly, a record for a mainland state, and came close to winning a fourth *voters could vote online for the second time at a State general election using the iVote system run by the New South Wales Electoral Commission *Mike Baird became the first non-elected Liberal Premier to be elected in his own right.


Results


Lower house


Seats changing hands

Eleven seats won by the Liberals and Nationals in 2011 went to other parties in 2015. Incumbent Liberal MPs were defeated by Labor challengers in Blue Mountains, Campbelltown, Granville, Rockdale and Strathfield. Incumbents Don Page (a National) and Robyn Parker (a Liberal) retired, with the Greens taking Page's seat of Ballina and Labor taking Parker's seat of Maitland. Londonderry, Port Stephens and Wyong, whose Liberal incumbents had been sitting as independents since 2013 and retired in 2015, returned to Labor. Former Liberal Edwards, in
Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...
, re-contested the seat as an independent but lost to Labor challenger
Yasmin Catley Yasmin Maree Catley is an Australian politician who was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly as the member for Electoral district of Swansea, Swansea for the Australian Labor Party (New South Wales Branch), Labor Party at the 2015 ...
. Miranda Labor MP Collier had retired at the 2011 election, with the Liberals' Annesley picking up the seat on a swing of nearly 22 points. When Annesley quit politics in 2013, Collier returned to contest the by-election, securing a 27-point swing – the largest-ever at a NSW by-election. Collier decided not to re-contest the seat in 2015, and the Liberals'
Eleni Petinos Eleni Marie Petinos is an Australian state politician in New South Wales. She served as the Minister for Small Business and the Minister for Fair Trading in the Perrottet ministry from December 2021 until her service was ceased on 31 July 2022 ...
took it with 63 per cent of the two-party-preferred vote. Northern Tablelands, won by an independent in 2011 and lost to the Nationals in 2013, was retained by the Nationals. Charlestown and Newcastle, won by the Liberals in 2011 and lost to Labor at by-elections in 2014, were retained by Labor. Following the 2013 redistribution (see below) the ABC recalculated the 2011 election results based on the new boundaries. These calculations deemed
Macquarie Fields Macquarie Fields is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Fields is located 38 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Campbelltown and ...
, a Labor marginal, notionally Liberal. The new seat of
Prospect Prospect may refer to: General * Prospect (marketing), a marketing term describing a potential customer * Prospect (sports), any player whose rights are owned by a professional team, but who has yet to play a game for the team * Prospect (mining ...
, which replaced Liberal-held Smithfield, was also considered notionally Liberal, albeit by a reduced margin. In Macquarie Fields, incumbent Labor MP Andrew McDonald did not re-contest and Labor candidate Anoulack Chanthivong defeated Liberal
Pat Farmer Patrick Francis Daniel Farmer (born 14 March 1962) is an ultra-marathon athlete, motivational speaker, and former Australian politician who served as a Member of the Australian House of Representatives, representing the seat of Macarthur in so ...
. In Prospect, the sitting Smithfield MP,
Andrew Rohan Andrew Baijan Rohan (born 30 June 1948 in Iraq), an Australian politician of Assyrian descent, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Smithfield for the Liberal Party from 2011 to 2015. Early years and backgroun ...
, was defeated by Labor candidate Hugh McDermott.


Upper house


Background

Labor governed NSW from 1995 until 2011. Over the course of its last two terms, a succession of leadership changes, criminal convictions, corruption scandals and cancelled infrastructure projects began to eat away at Labor's support base. In a harbinger of things to come, the previously safe Labor seats of Ryde and Penrith were both resoundingly lost to the Liberals, in both cases turning into safe Liberal seats in one stroke. In March 2011, the Liberals and Nationals, led by the Liberals' Barry O'Farrell, won one of the most comprehensive state-level victories since Federation, taking 69 seats in the Legislative Assembly. The new Government embarked on a modest reform program, franchising the operation of
Sydney Ferries Sydney Ferries is the public transport ferry network serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales. Services operate on Sydney Harbour and the connecting Parramatta River. The network is controlled by the New South Wales Government's transport a ...
, leasing three port corporations, establishing 'one-stop shop' government service centres, abolishing car registration stickers, decentralising government offices, and reducing back-office bureaucracy by merging or abolishing a number of state agencies. At the same time, the Government embarked on a major infrastructure program, including the North West Rail Link, CBD and South East Light Rail,
Newcastle Light Rail The Newcastle Light Rail is a light rail system in Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia, running from Newcastle Interchange through the central business district to Pacific Park. Major construction commenced in September 2017 and the line was ...
, Northern Sydney Freight Corridor, WestConnex, NorthConnex, upgrades to the Pacific and
Princes A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary title, hereditary, in some Euro ...
highways, and preparations for a new Western Sydney Airport. In 2013, the Nationals won a by-election in Northern Tablelands after independent MP
Richard Torbay George Richard Torbay (born 26 March 1961), an Australian politician, was an independent member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Northern Tablelands from 1999 to 2013. Torbay was the 30th Speaker of the New South Wales L ...
resigned over corruption allegations.


The Government party room shrinks

The win in Northern Tablelands represented the high point for the Government party room. At the next by-election, caused when Sports Minister and member for Miranda
Graham Annesley Graham Annesley (born 26 May 1957) is an Australian former politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Miranda for the Liberal Party from 2011 to 2013. From 3 April 2011 to 28 August 2013 he was the Min ...
resigned to take a job in Queensland, the Liberals suffered the largest two-party-preferred swing in state history—26 points—and former MP Barry Collier reclaimed the seat for Labor. Things got worse for the Government when news broke of Operation Spicer, an Independent Commission Against Corruption investigation into allegedly illegal campaign donations to a number of Liberal MPs from the Hunter and Central Coast. Throughout 2014, a succession of implicated MPs quit the parliamentary Liberal party to sit as independents:
Craig Baumann Craig Asbjorn Baumann (born 30 April 1953) is an Australian politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 2007 to 2015, representing the electorate of Port Stephens. He was elected as a member of the Liberal Par ...
( Port Stephens), Andrew Cornwell ( Charlestown), Garry Edwards (
Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...
), Marie Ficarra (Legislative Council),
Mike Gallacher Michael Joseph Gallacher (born 27 September 1961 in Paisley, Scotland), an Australian politician, was the Minister for Police and Emergency Services and Vice-President of the Executive Council in the O'Farrell government and Baird governmen ...
(Legislative Council), Chris Hartcher (
Terrigal Terrigal is a coastal town in the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia, located east of Gosford on the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the local government area. History Terrigal was first settled in 1826 by European Settler John Gray, ...
),
Tim Owen Timothy Francis Owen (born 29 October 1955) is a former Australian politician and a former deputy commander of the Australian Forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing the elector ...
( Newcastle), Chris Spence ( The Entrance) and
Darren Webber Darren James Webber (born 29 June 1981), an Australian politician, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Wyong on the Central Coast for the Liberal Party from the 2011 New South Wales state election until 19 Fe ...
( Wyong).
Bart Bassett Bart Edward Bassett (born 4 March 1961) is an Australian politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 2011 to 2015, representing the electorate of Londonderry. He was elected as a member of the Liberal Party, bu ...
, MP for the Western Sydney seat of Londonderry, was also implicated and quit the parliamentary party. Cornwell and Owen later resigned from parliament following damning evidence presented at the Spicer public hearing, triggering by-elections in Charlestown and Newcastle. In what the Liberals described as an "act of atonement" for Owen and Cornwell's actions, the party did not contest either by-election, and Labor easily reclaimed both seats. All but Edwards indicated their intention not to stand for re-election in 2015 (Gallacher's Legislative Council term does not expire until 2019); Edwards would be heavily defeated by Labor's Catley.


Baird replaces O'Farrell

However, Spicer's biggest scalp was that of Premier O'Farrell, who found he'd inadvertently misled the Commission over a bottle of wine he'd received as a gift from lobbyist Nick Di Girolamo. O'Farrell called a press conference and announced his resignation on 17 April 2014. The frontrunners to replace him were Treasurer Mike Baird and Transport Minister
Gladys Berejiklian Gladys Berejiklian (born 22 September 1970) is an Australian former politician who served as the 45th premier of New South Wales and the leader of the New South Wales division of the Liberal Party from 2017 to 2021. Berejiklian became a member ...
, though in the event Baird stood unopposed, with Berejiklian elected unopposed as his deputy. A Cabinet reshuffle followed, with ministers Robyn Parker, Don Page, Greg Smith and George Souris dumped to make way for Troy Grant, Jai Rowell, Rob Stokes and
Paul Toole Paul Lawrence Toole (born 2 August 1970), an Australian politician, is the Deputy Premier and leader of the New South Wales Nationals since October 2021. Toole is the Minister for Regional New South Wales in the second Berejiklian and Perrot ...
. The Nationals followed suit six months later, with leader and Deputy Premier Andrew Stoner stepping down due to undisclosed family issues on 15 October. Stoner was quickly removed from Cabinet, replaced by John Barilaro; Grant succeeded him as Nationals leader and Deputy Premier. Soon after taking office, Baird and Grant put a massive infrastructure program, funded by partial privatisation of the state's electricity networks, at the heart of the Government's re-election campaign.


Lead-up to the election

Labor soon faced leadership problems of its own. In the aftermath of a hostage drama at a café in central Sydney, it emerged that Opposition Leader
John Robertson John, Jon, or Jonathan Robertson may refer to: Politicians United Kingdom politicians * J. M. Robertson (John Mackinnon Robertson, 1856–1933), British journalist and Liberal MP for Tyneside 1906–1918 *John Robertson (Bothwell MP) (1867–1926) ...
had, in his capacity as member for Blacktown, made a representation on behalf of the gunman,
Man Haron Monis Man Haron Monis (born Mohammed Hassan Manteghi Borujerdi; 19 May 1964 – 16 December 2014) was an Iranian-born refugee and Australian citizen who took hostages in a siege at the Lindt Chocolate Café at Martin Place, Sydney on 15 Decem ...
, three years earlier. Facing threats of being voted out, Robertson stepped down on 23 December. Though frontbenchers
Michael Daley Michael John Daley (born 1 November 1965) is an Australian politician who was the Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of New South Wales from November 2018 to March 2019. He is currently a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assemb ...
and
Steve Whan Steven James Robert Whan (born 11 February 1964) is a former Australian politician who was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 2011 to 2015. Whan represented the electoral district of Monaro in the New South Wales Legislati ...
considered running, both men withdrew in favour of the party's Planning spokesman and leader in the Legislative Council, Luke Foley. Working in the Government's favour was a highly popular leader and a fully funded plan to build additional roads and rail lines in Sydney, easing congestion. However, the Government now faced significant headwinds on its way to the March election. The Opposition had a new leader relatively untainted by the corruption that had marred the previous Labor government. The federal Liberal/National government in Canberra was unpopular following a poorly received austerity budget. Their policy platform was a form of privatisation, something with limited electoral appeal, that sparked a well-resourced union scare campaign. Lingering anger over revelations from Operation Spicer remained in many seats. In regional areas, the Nationals had long faced a scare campaign on coal-seam gas. Earlier, first-term conservative premiers had been toppled in Victoria, then Queensland. Despite the Government's continuing lead in opinion polls, the ABC's Antony Green tipped a much closer contest than the numbers suggested, "with the government at risk of losing its majority."


Redistribution

The 2007 and 2011 elections were conducted using boundaries set in 2004. The state constitution requires the Electoral Commission to review electoral district boundaries after every two elections, to ensure that the number of voters in each district is within 10 per cent of the "quota" – the number of voters divided by the number of Legislative Assembly seats. In 2012, the Commission began work on determining new boundaries for the 2015 election, a process commonly known as "redistribution". The quota was 52,770, meaning that each district needed to have between 47,000 and 58,000 enrolled electors. The Nationals-held district of Murrumbidgee was abolished, and the Nationals-held districts of Burrinjuck and Murray-Darling renamed
Cootamundra Cootamundra, nicknamed Coota, is a town in the South West Slopes region of New South Wales, Australia and within the Riverina. It is within the Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council. At the 2016 Census, Cootamundra had a population of 6,782. ...
and
Murray Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust * D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...
respectively. Burrinjuck MP Katrina Hodgkinson initially announced her intention to run for Goulburn, taking on her cabinet colleague, Liberal
Pru Goward Prudence Jane "Pru" Goward (born 2 September 1952) is a former Australian politician and was a Liberal member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 2007 to 2019, representing the seat of Goulburn. She was the New South Wales Minis ...
, on the grounds that much of the area she now represented would be in the Goulburn district come 2015. O'Farrell reportedly persuaded Hodgkinson to back down, to avoid splitting the conservative vote and potentially losing Goulburn to Labor. Hodgkinson went on to contest Cootamundra, while Murrumbidgee MP
Adrian Piccoli Adrian Piccoli (born 24 March 1970) is a former Australian politician who represented the electoral district of Murray in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 2015 to 2017, and the district of Murrumbidgee from 1999 to 2015. He was the ...
contested Murray and Murray-Darling MP
John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...
joined the party's upper house ticket. In Sydney, replaced Liberal-held Menai was renamed Holsworthy, Liberal-held Smithfield was renamed
Prospect Prospect may refer to: General * Prospect (marketing), a marketing term describing a potential customer * Prospect (sports), any player whose rights are owned by a professional team, but who has yet to play a game for the team * Prospect (mining ...
, Labor-held Toongabbie was renamed Seven Hills, and Labor-held Marrickville was renamed Summer Hill. A new inner-city district, Newtown, was also created. Based on 2011 voting patterns, the ABC calculated that Seven Hills and
Macquarie Fields Macquarie Fields is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Fields is located 38 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Campbelltown and ...
were notionally Liberal seats, while Newtown was notionally Greens-held. The new boundaries were gazetted on 18 September 2013, with effect from the 2015 election. The ABC calculated that in 2011 the new boundaries would have increased Liberal representation from 51 to 53, reduced Nationals representation from 18 to 17, increased Greens representation from one to two, and reduced Labor representation from 20 to 18.


Candidates

''For a full list of candidates, see Candidates of the 2015 New South Wales state election


Mike Baird

Mike Baird MP (born 1 April 1968) was the 44th Premier of New South Wales, the Minister for Infrastructure, the Minister for Western Sydney, and the Leader of the New South Wales Liberal Party from April 2014 until January 2017. He represented the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Manly for the Liberal Party of Australia from 2007 until 2017. Before becoming Premier, he was the Treasurer of New South Wales in the O'Farrell government between 2011 and 2014. Baird has completed a Bachelor of Arts (Economics) at the University of Sydney and previously worked as an investment banker at Deutsche Bank, NAB and HSBC. Baird is married to Kerryn and they have three children.


Luke Foley

Luke Foley took over as Labor leader from Robertson following the latter's resignation in December 2014. Foley had initially faced two challengers for the job – Michael Daley and Steve Whan – though both men ultimately withdrew from the race. As a member of the Legislative Council, Foley was required by convention to seek a seat in the Legislative Assembly, and so nominated for the inner western Sydney seat of Auburn. Both the incumbent MP, Barbara Perry, and her preselection challenger,
Hicham Zraika Hicham is a given name that may refer to: * Hicham Aaboubou (born 1978), Moroccan soccer player * Hicham Aboucherouane (born 1981), Moroccan football striker * Hicham Arazi (born 1973), Moroccan tennis player * Hicham Bellani Hicham Bellani (b ...
, withdrew, allowing Foley to take the nomination unopposed. During the campaign, Foley was unable to match his opponent's appeal, consistently recording net satisfaction ratings under 10 and "better premier" ratings around half that of Baird's ( see below). Hailing from the party's Socialist Left faction, Foley is a former National Union of Students president, Australian Services Union state secretary, Labor assistant state secretary and parliamentary staffer. In the Legislative Council, Foley served as both Opposition Leader in that House and the party's shadow minister for Planning. Foley is married to Edel McKenna and they have three children.


Legislative Assembly

Before the election, the governing Liberal and National parties held 42 and 19 seats, respectively. The main opposition Labor party held 23. The crossbench was composed of nine MPs: the Greens' Jamie Parker; independents Alex Greenwich and Greg Piper; and six MPs elected as Liberals in 2011 but who resigned from the parliamentary party following ICAC's Operation Spicer. In 2015, the Liberals contested 74 seats and the Nationals 19. (The 2013 redistribution eliminated one Nationals seat in south-western NSW. The only Labor-held seat in which the Nationals stood a candidate was Cessnock.) Labor contested all 93 seats. Of the crossbenchers, only Parker, Greenwich and Piper recontested, along with former Liberal Garry Edwards.


Legislative Council

All six parties represented before the election in the Legislative Council nominated candidates. As in previous elections, the governing Liberal and
National National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
parties fielded a joint ticket. Between them, the parties won eight Council seats in 2007, among them the seats of ministers
John Ajaka John George Ajaka (born 13 January 1956), an Australian politician, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 2007 to 2021, representing the Liberal Party and he is the first Liberal Party Lebanese Australian member of an Au ...
and
Matthew Mason-Cox Matthew Ryan Mason-Cox is an Australian politician serving as President of the New South Wales Legislative Council, President of the New South Wales Legislative Council since 4 May 2021. He is a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council ...
. Eleven Liberal and Nationals members of the Legislative Council (MLCs) were elected in 2011 and did not face election in 2015. The 2015 ticket was headed by Ajaka for the Liberals and, facing his first electoral test, the former Nationals State Director Ben Franklin. The Liberals and Nationals directed their Legislative Council preferences, indeed "swap preferences", to the Christian Democrats. The Labor ticket was branded as "Labor / Country Labor". Labor won nine Council seats in 2007, among them the seat occupied by Foley. (Foley was appointed to fill the seat left vacant by the resignation in 2010 of disgraced former minister Ian Macdonald.) Five Labor MLCs were elected in 2011 and did not face election in 2015. The 2015 Labor ticket was headed by former union official Sophie Cotsis. Labor directed its Legislative Council preferences to the Greens. The
Greens Greens may refer to: *Leaf vegetables such as collard greens, mustard greens, spring greens, winter greens, spinach, etc. Politics Supranational * Green politics * Green party, political parties adhering to Green politics * Global Greens * Europ ...
won two seats in 2007 – by
Lee Rhiannon Lee Rhiannon (formerly O'Gorman, ''née'' Brown; born 30 May 1951) is a former Australian politician who was a Senator for New South Wales between July 2011 and August 2018. She was elected at the 2010 federal election, representing the Austr ...
(now a federal NSW senator) and John Kaye. Rhiannon was later replaced by Cate Faehrmann, who in turn was replaced by Mehreen Faruqi. Kaye and Faruqi recontested in 2015. Three Greens MLCs were elected in 2011 and did not face election in 2015. The Greens directed their Legislative Council preferences to what they considered as 'progressive' micro parties, followed by Labor. The Christian Democratic Party (CDP) had two seats, of which one faced election. Party leader
Fred Nile Frederick John Nile (born 15 September 1934) is an Australian politician and ordained Christian minister. Nile has been a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council since 1981, except for a period in 2004. Nile was re-elected at the Marc ...
headed the 2015 ticket. The CDP directed their Legislative Council preferences to, indeed "swap preferences with", the Liberals and Nationals. The Shooters and Fishers Party (SFP) had two seats, of which one faced election. Incumbent
Robert Borsak Robert Borsak (born 14 August 1953) is the leader of the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party (SFF). He represents the party in the New South Wales Legislative Council. He was chosen by the Shooters and Fishers Party to fill the New South Wa ...
headed the 2015 ticket. Two MLCs elected as Liberals, former Police Minister
Mike Gallacher Michael Joseph Gallacher (born 27 September 1961 in Paisley, Scotland), an Australian politician, was the Minister for Police and Emergency Services and Vice-President of the Executive Council in the O'Farrell government and Baird governmen ...
and former Hurstville mayor Marie Ficarra, had sat as independents following Operation Spicer. Ficarra, whose term expired in 2015, did not recontest. Gallacher, who was re-elected in 2011, remained an MLC. A further 11 groups registered party names and fielded candidates: Eight groups nominated without a registered party name. Seventeen candidates nominated without groups.


Retiring members

Former Premier O'Farrell (Liberal,
Ku-ring-gai Kuringgai (also spelled Ku-ring-gai, Kuring-gai, Guringai, Kuriggai) (,) is an ethnonym referring to (a) an hypothesis regarding an aggregation of Indigenous Australian peoples occupying the territory between the southern borders of the Gamilar ...
) did not re-contest his seat, along with dumped former ministers Greg Smith (Liberal,
Epping Epping may refer to: Places Australia * Epping, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney ** Epping railway station, Sydney * Electoral district of Epping, the corresponding seat in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly * Epping Forest, Kearns, a he ...
), Don Page (Nationals, Ballina), Robyn Parker (Liberal, Maitland), George Souris (Nationals,
Upper Hunter The Upper Hunter Shire is a local government area in the Upper Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire was formed in May 2004 from the Scone Shire and parts of Murrurundi and Merriwa shires. The Mayor of the Upper Hunter Shir ...
) and Andrew Stoner (Nationals,
Oxley Oxley may refer to: Places Australia Australian Capital Territory * Oxley, Australian Capital Territory is a suburb of Canberra, Australia Queensland *Oxley, Queensland is a suburb of Brisbane, Australia **Oxley railway station, Brisbane ...
). Long-serving MLCs Charlie Lynn (Liberal) and
Jenny Gardiner Jennifer Ann Gardiner (born 16 October 1950) is an Australian politician and former Nationals member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 1991 to 2015. Early years Gardiner was born in Penola, South Australia. She attended primar ...
(Nationals) also announced they would not be running again. Lynn, then aged 70, planned to run for the state presidency of the Returned and Services League. All but two of the former Liberal MPs implicated by Operation Spicer announced they would not re-contest: Bassett ( Londonderry), Baumann ( Port Stephens), Hartcher (
Terrigal Terrigal is a coastal town in the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia, located east of Gosford on the Pacific Ocean. It is part of the local government area. History Terrigal was first settled in 1826 by European Settler John Gray, ...
), Spence ( The Entrance), Webber ( Wyong) and Ficarra (Legislative Council). On the Labor side, Barbara Perry, who had been facing a preselection challenge for her seat of
Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...
, withdrew to allow Foley to win Labor's nomination unopposed. Former Premier Nathan Rees ( Toongabbie), former deputy Premier
Carmel Tebbutt Carmel Mary Tebbutt (born 22 January 1964) is an Australian former politician. She was the Labor Party Member for the former seat of Marrickville in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly until the 2015 election and was Deputy Premier of New ...
( Marrickville) and
Father of the House Father of the House is a title that has been traditionally bestowed, unofficially, on certain members of some legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the title refers to the longest continuously- ...
Richard Amery ( Mount Druitt) also announced their intention to quit politics, along with Cherie Burton ( Kogarah), Barry Collier ( Miranda),
Amanda Fazio Amanda Ruth Fazio (born 23 August 1954) is an Australian politician; she was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council representing the Labor Party from 2000 to 2015. Fazio was President of the Legislative Council from 24 November 2 ...
(after losing preselection for her Legislative Council seat), Robert Furolo ( Lakemba), and Andrew McDonald (
Macquarie Fields Macquarie Fields is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Fields is located 38 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Campbelltown and ...
).


Campaign

The Liberal campaign slogans were "Back Baird" and "Keep NSW Working". Labor ran on "A New Approach for NSW".


Poles and wires

Baird sought a mandate to lease 49% of the government's electricity distributors, known locally as the "poles and wires", for 99 years and invest the proceeds in new road, public transport, water, health and education infrastructure. With opposition to the lease forming the centrepiece of Labor's campaign, the election was widely viewed as a referendum on the proposal. The government's plan involved the lease of 100% of high-voltage distributor
TransGrid Transgrid is the manager and operator of the high voltage electricity transmission network in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, Australia, and is part of the National Electricity Market (NEM). The company's offices are located ...
and majority stakes in
Ausgrid Ausgrid is an electricity distribution company which owns, maintains and operates the electrical networks supplying 1.8 million customers servicing more than 4 million people in Sydney, the Central Coast and Hunter regions of New South Wales, A ...
and
Endeavour Energy Endeavour Energy is the operator of the electrical distribution network for Greater Western Sydney, the Blue Mountains, the Southern Highlands and the Illawarra region of NSW, Australia. Background It was formed from the previously state-owne ...
, which together cover local distribution in metropolitan NSW. Country-based
Essential Energy Essential Energy is a state-owned electricity infrastructure company which owns, maintains and operates the electrical distribution networks for much of New South Wales, covering 95 percent of the state geography. It also owns the reticulated w ...
was not part of the proposal. The proceeds, estimated at $20 billion, were to be spent on major projects including an extension of the under-construction North West Rail Link to the city centre and on to Bankstown. The plan enjoyed support, from business groups, such as the Energy Users' Association, the
Business Council The Business Council is an organization of business leaders headquartered in Washington, D.C.Australian Industry Group The Australian Industry Group, also called Ai Group, is an employers' organisation, whose members employ over 750,000 people throughout Australia. The organisation covers a wide range of industries including manufacturing, engineering, constructi ...
; and by transport lobby groups Infrastructure Partnerships Australia and the Tourism and Transport Forum. In addition, a number of senior Labor figures came out in support, including former Prime Minister Paul Keating, former NSW Treasurer Michael Costa, and former federal Resources Minister Martin Ferguson. Following the election, former Labor Premiers Bob Carr and Morris Iemma and former Labor Treasurer Michael Egan added their voices in support. Full privatisation of poles and wires also had the support of Australia's Productivity Commission. The plan was opposed by Labor, the Greens, the Shooters & Fishers and a number of unions. The plan also polled poorly and attracted little support on the ABC's ''Vote Compass'' site. Labor's campaign in opposition, supported by the union-funded television, outdoor and direct-mail advertising, rested on three arguments: * that retail prices would rise * that under a partial lease arrangement, the assets would be "gone for good" * that the potential involvement of Chinese investors posed a risk to national security. The party's claims on price increases were debunked by separate reports from Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Deloitte Access Economics and the
Grattan Institute Grattan Institute is an Australian public policy think tank, established in 2008. The Melbourne-based institute is non-aligned, defining itself as contributing "to public policy in Australia as a liberal democracy in a globalised economy." It is ...
. Dr Tom Parry, formerly the head of NSW's Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal, told ''The Australian'' "all the evidence" was that privatised networks "have much better cost controls ... I don't see why there's any basis to suggest that network charges will go up as a result of privatisation." Some of the most savage criticism came from within the Labor party itself. Keating dismissed the campaign as the work of "some obscurantists". Ferguson went further, saying he was "ashamed of the Party" and accusing Foley and the unions of "deliberately misleading the public, creating unnecessary fear and trying to scare people." Costa, whose own privatisation plan had been rejected by Labor's state conference, slammed "a small, privileged special interest group, the electricity unions" for repeating "lie after desperate lie" on the government's plan. Egan said simply "I would've thought the Labor Party had grown up on that issue." Foley's suggestion that Chinese investment represented a national security risk was dismissed as racist " dog-whistle politics" by treasurer
Andrew Constance Andrew James Constance (born 31 October 1973) is a former Australian politician and was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Bega for the Liberal Party between 2003 and December 2021. Constance served as the New S ...
and Egan. Federal Race Discrimination Commissioner
Tim Soutphommasane Thinethavone "Tim" Soutphommasane ( ; born 1982) is an Australian academic, social commentator and former public servant. He was Australia's Race Discrimination Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission from 2013 to 2018. He has pre ...
, himself a former Labor staffer, implored Labor and the unions on Twitter not to "licence xenophobia".


Coal-seam gas

Coal-seam gas (CSG) extraction became a major issue, particularly on the fringes of the metropolitan area and in the Northern Rivers region. When it left office, Labor had awarded CSG licences covering about 60 per cent of the state's land area. The Liberals and Nationals also supported CSG as a means to create regional jobs and prevent an expected increase in domestic natural gas prices. Responding to what was described as "a climate of community unease" about land access and the possibility of environmental damage, the Government asked the state's independent Chief Scientist, Professor
Mary O'Kane Mary Josephine O'Kane, AC (born 1954) an Australian scientist and engineer, is the Chair of the Independent Planning Commission of New South Wales (formerly the NSW Planning Assessment Commission). She is also a company director and Executive ...
, to review the CSG industry in NSW. O'Kane concluded that "the technical challenges and risks posed by the CSG industry can in general be managed", allowing extraction to continue. Nonetheless, the Government had gas firms hand back many of the most contentious outstanding undeveloped licences in Sydney, the Central Coast and the Northern Rivers. Labor promised to go further, simply banning CSG extraction statewide, an approach which would have led to higher natural gas prices, triggered compensation payments to gas investors and, according to the industry, revealed "a stubborn refusal to face the facts" in the light of the O'Kane report. The Greens, who had always opposed CSG, went on to beat Labor into second place on primary votes in two Nationals-held Northern Rivers seats, Ballina and Lismore.


Newcastle revitalisation

In December 2013, the government had suspended services on the surface-level train line that separates the Newcastle city centre from the
Hunter River Hunter River may refer to: *Hunter River (New South Wales), Australia *Hunter River (Western Australia) *Hunter River, New Zealand *Hunter River (Prince Edward Island), Canada **Hunter River, Prince Edward Island, community on Hunter River, Canada ...
waterfront. The line had long been considered an impediment to the city's development, and the government's plan was to close the line and build a light rail system in its place. Labor, which had advocated for such a plan in government, now led opposition to it.


Health and education

Labor criticised alleged cuts to health and education.


Character and experience

Labor attacked Baird for his former career in banking and his friendship with prime minister Tony Abbott, whose electorate of
Warringah Warringah is a name taken from the local Aboriginal word for Middle Harbour, in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It may refer to: *Division of Warringah, an electoral division of the Australian House of Representatives created in 1922 *Electoral ...
overlaps Baird's seat of Manly. At the time of the election, Abbott was polling poorly. In an echo of the Liberals' successful 2004 campaign against then Opposition Leader Mark Latham, the Government branded Foley an '
L-plate An L-plate is a square plate bearing a sans-serif letter L, for ''learner'', which must be affixed to the front and/or back of a vehicle in many countries if its driver is a learner under instruction, or a motorcycle rider with provisional entit ...
' leader on the basis of his lack of ministerial and leadership experience.http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw-state-election-2015/baird-bus-joke-puts-luke-foley-in-mountain-of-trouble/story-fnrskx7r-1227278799923


Incidents

Baird's
campaign bus A campaign bus (battle bus in the UK) is a bus used as both a vehicle and a center of operations during a political campaign, whether for a specific candidate, a political party, or a political cause. A campaign bus can also transport members of ...
was attacked by graffiti vandals during an overnight stop in Katoomba. Foley later joked on radio: “Fancy leaving your bus out overnight in Katoomba, unguarded. You’re asking for trouble. I’m surprised there are still wheels." Foley's comments drew criticism from both Blue Mountains MP
Roza Sage Roza Eva Maria Sage (born 25 November 1957), an Australian politician, was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing the Blue Mountains for the Liberal Party from 2011 to 2015. Early years and background Completing he ...
and the local Chamber of Commerce. An error on the Electoral Commission's "iVote" electronic pre-poll voting system reportedly omitted the Animal Justice Party from the "above the line" section of the Legislative Council ballot for 36 hours, during which time 19,000 votes were cast. Animal Justice, a micro-party that received less than two per cent of the vote, is nonetheless considered a contender for the 21st and final Council seat, thanks to a preference deal with the Greens. The party's lead candidate, Mark Pearson, said he was considering legal action if he did not gain a seat. On 26 March, a 20-year-old Liberal campaign volunteer in
Cabramatta Cabramatta ('Cabra') is a suburb in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Cabramatta is located south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Fairfield. Cabramatta ...
was allegedly struck by a Labor volunteer during an altercation outside a pre-poll centre. A video of the incident was captured by the alleged victim on her mobile phone. Police were reportedly investigating the incident. East Hills Labor candidate
Cameron Murphy The Hon. Cameron Lionel Murphy AM MLC (born 30 March 1973) is an Australian barrister, civil libertarian and Labor Party member of the NSW Legislative Council. Murphy is a member of the New South Wales Bar Association and is admitted as a l ...
alleged he had been the victim of a dirty tricks campaign, involving leaflets and stickers branding the
civil libertarian Civil libertarianism is a strain of political thought that supports civil liberties, or which emphasizes the supremacy of individual rights and personal freedoms over and against any kind of authority (such as a state, a corporation, social nor ...
as a " paedophile lover" because of his work as president of the
NSW Council for Civil Liberties Founded in 1963, the charter of the NSW Council for Civil Liberties is to protect the rights and liberties of Australian citizens (as long as they do not infringe on the rights and freedoms of others) and to oppose the abusive or excessive exerci ...
. East Hills, held by Labor continuously from 1953 to 2011, was won in 2011 by Liberal
Glenn Brookes Glenn Edward Brookes (born 13 August 1959) is an Australian politician who was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing East Hills from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Liberal Party, he resigned to become an independen ...
with a margin of 0.2 points (adjusting for boundary changes in 2013). Murphy told the press he had lodged a complaint with the Electoral Commission and was seeking legal advice. The newly registered No Land Tax Party fielded candidates in all 93 electoral districts, thus maximising their chances of receiving public funding. Party leader Peter Jones conceded he had not met half of the candidates, many of whom did not live in the districts they hoped to represent. In Bega, held by Treasurer
Andrew Constance Andrew James Constance (born 31 October 1973) is a former Australian politician and was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Bega for the Liberal Party between 2003 and December 2021. Constance served as the New S ...
for the Liberals, reports surfaced during the campaign that No Land Tax candidate Clyde Archard had in fact died in Borneo as a prisoner of war in 1945. He nonetheless received 2.3 per cent of the vote.


Newspaper endorsements

In the final week of the campaign, the Liberals and Nationals received the endorsement of the main daily and Sunday newspapers in the state: '' The Australian'', '' The Australian Financial Review'', '' The Daily Telegraph'', '' The Sunday Telegraph'', '' The Sun-Herald'' and '' The Sydney Morning Herald''.


Election night

Election night coverage was provided by the
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
,
Seven 7 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 7 or seven may also refer to: * AD 7, the seventh year of the AD era * 7 BC, the seventh year before the AD era * The month of July Music Artists * Seven (Swiss singer) (born 1978), a Swiss recording artist ...
, Nine and Sky News Australia. Collectively, the three free-to-air programs had 371,000 viewers in the Sydney market. Labor supporters gathered at Dooley's Catholic Club in Lidcombe. Foley conceded defeat at 9.20 pm, saying "a majority of voters have decided that now is too soon for Labor to return to government.""http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-28/live3a-2015-nsw-election-night/6354264" Liberal supporters gathered at Sydney's Sofitel Sydney Wentworth, where Baird claimed victory at 9.45 pm. "The reason I love this state is because of its people," Baird told the crowd, "And tonight they have chosen hope over fear."


Aftermath

On 1 April Baird announced a reshuffle of the ministry. His deputy, Berejiklian, was promoted to Treasurer, while Constance moved to Transport. Nationals leader Grant took on Justice and Police. Rob Stokes was promoted from Environment to Planning; Gabrielle Upton from Community Services to Attorney-General. Goward was demoted from Planning to Mental Health. Ministers Hodgkinson and Mason-Cox, along with Liberal Jai Rowell and National Kevin Humphries were dropped from the ministry in favour of Liberals David Elliott and
Mark Speakman Mark Raymond Speakman (born 6 November 1959) is an Australian politician. He has served as the New South Wales Attorney General since January 2017 in the second Berejiklian ministry since April 2019, and in the first arrangement of the Perrott ...
and Nationals
Niall Blair Niall Mark Blair (born 22 May 1977) is a former Australian politician and was the former Deputy Leader of the National Party of Australia – NSW, New South Wales Nationals. Blair was a National Party of Australia – NSW, Nationals member of t ...
and Leslie Williams. On election night Foley told supporters he intended to stay on as party leader. Daley, his former leadership rival, ruled out a challenge, saying the party was in a "rebuilding phase". Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) secretary Dave Oliver, NSW Labor secretary Jamie Clements, Senator
Sam Dastyari Sam Dastyari ( fa, سام دستیاری; born Sahand Dastyari, ; born 28 July 1983) is a former Australian politician, who from 2013 to 2018 represented New South Wales in the Australian Senate as a member of the Australian Labor Party. Dastyar ...
and other Labor figures called for Ferguson to be expelled from Labor for him slamming the party's stance on the privatization – something Dastyari characterised as "high treason" and a "bastard act". Ferguson, a 40-year veteran of the party, former ACTU president and former federal minister, stood by his remarks during the campaign, saying "I've done nothing but express a consistent policy position that in the end will mean lower energy prices for the traditional base that the Labor Party is supposed to represent." Labor was not united in the push to expel Ferguson, however, with former ACTU secretary
Bill Kelty William John Kelty, AC (born 5 February 1948) is an Australian trade unionist and a well-known figure in the Australian labour movement, who served as Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) from 1983 to 2000. Born in Brunswi ...
and former NSW Premier Morris Iemma among those coming to his defence. Iemma described the expulsion push as "petty and vindictive", exposing the party as "intolerant and incapable of embracing divergent views." A number of campaign workers for the No Land Tax Party came forward after the election claiming they had not been paid as promised by party leader Peter Jones. Others claimed they had signed up thinking they would be working for the Electoral Commission. Jones later took up the iVote complaint, even though it did not affect his party, saying "The only way the election won't be overturned is if the judge is on the take or on crystal meth."


Opinion polling

Several research, media and polling firms conduct opinion polls during the parliamentary term and prior to the state election in relation to voting. Most firms use the flow of preferences at the previous election to determine the two-party-preferred vote; others ask respondents to nominate preferences.


Primary vote opinion polling graph


Two-party preferred polling graph


Voting intention polling


Better Premier and leadership polling


See also

*
Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, 2011–2015 Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly who served in the 55th parliament held their seats from 2011 to 2015. They were elected at the 2011 state election and at by-elections. The Speaker was Shelley Hancock. See also *O'Farrell ...
*
Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council, 2011–2015 Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council who served in the 55th Parliament were elected at the Results of the 2007 New South Wales state election (Legislative Council), 2007 and Results of the 2011 New South Wales state election (Legisl ...


References

{{Government of New South Wales Elections in New South Wales 2015 elections in Australia 2010s in New South Wales March 2015 events in Australia