Division Of Indi

The Division of Indi ( ) is an Australian electoral division in the state of Victoria. The division is located in the north-east of the state, adjoining the border with New South Wales. The largest settlements in the division are the regional cities of Wodonga, Wangaratta, and Benalla. Other towns in the electorate include Rutherglen, Mansfield, Beechworth, Myrtleford, Bright, Alexandra, Tallangatta, Corryong and a number of other small villages (including the ski resort of Falls Creek). While Indi is one of the largest electorates in Victoria, much of it is located within the largely uninhabited Australian Alps. While Wodonga serves as a regional hub for much of the more heavily populated northern part of the electorate, the southern part is closer to Melbourne than Wodonga.

The current member for Indi, since the 2019 federal election, is independent Helen Haines.

Geography

Since 1984, federal electoral division boundaries in Australia have been determined at redistributions by a redistribution committee appointed by the Australian Electoral Commission. Redistributions occur for the boundaries of divisions in a particular state, and they occur every seven years, or sooner if a state's representation entitlement changes or when divisions of a state are malapportioned.

In 1936, the division was expanded west to include Shepparton due to the abolition of Division of Echuca. In 1949, this was reversed with the creation of the new Division of Murray around the area. Also in the same redistribution, the division expanded southwards to include Yea, Alexandra and Mansfield, replacing parts of Division of Deakin. The division then remain largely similar with minor boundary changes until 1984.

In 1984, the division lost its southern half and was massively shrunk back to Benalla, with the areas lost becoming part of the new Division of McEwen, named after a former member for Indi John McEwen. Since 1984, the division gradually took back majority of these lost areas from McEwen or other divisions, such as Mansfield in 2003, Yea, Alexandra and Eildon in 2010, and Euroa and Violet Town in 2018. Indi had previously taken back Euroa and Violet Town in 1994, but lost them to the Division of Murray in 2010.

History

Indi has existed continuously since Federation. The division was proclaimed in 1900, and was one of the original 65 divisions contested at the first federal election. The most nationally prominent person to have represented Indi was the first, Sir Isaac Isaacs, who rose to become Attorney-General of Australia, Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia, and the first Australian-born Governor-General of Australia. Another member for Indi, John McEwen, transferred from the abolished Division of Echuca to Indi in 1937 and served as member for Indi for 12 years, before transferring to the new Division of Murray in 1949. McEwen was a long-serving Minister and would later be briefly Prime Minister of Australia after the death of Harold Holt in 1967.

Indi has been held by a member of a conservative party (either the Liberal Party and its predecessors or the National Party) or a conservative independent for all but four terms, and without interruption since 1931. Labor last won the seat in 1928 when the Country incumbent forgot to renominate, and retained the seat in 1929. Since 2004, the Liberal primary vote has been in decline, falling from 63% in 2004, to 54% in 2007, 53% in 2010, 44% in 2013 and 27% in 2016. In 2019, the Liberal primary vote rose slightly to 35% before falling again, in 2022, to 31%.

At the 2013 election, independent Cathy McGowan unseated Liberal Party incumbent Sophie Mirabella, the only incumbent Liberal MP to lose their seat at that election. It was considered a major upset, because Mirabella had won the previous election with a two-party-preferred vote of almost 60 percent, which is considered more than fairly safe.

McGowan retained Indi against Mirabella at the 2016 election, with an increased 54.8% (+4.6) two-candidate-preferred vote. The Liberal two-party-preferred vote was reduced to 54.4% (–4.7) against Labor's 45.6% (+4.7), a marginal two-party-preferred result not seen since the 1929 election.

McGowan retired in 2019 and was succeeded by fellow independent, Helen Haines, who incurred a swing of four percent to the Liberals, compared with McGowan's 2016 vote, and was elected on Labor preferences.

Members

Election results

References

External links

Division of Indi – Australian Electoral Commission

{{DEFAULTSORT:Indi, Division of
Electoral divisions of Australia
Electoral divisions of Australia in Victoria
Constituencies established in 1901
1901 establishments in Australia
Hume (region)
Wangaratta
Wodonga
Shire of Indigo
Shire of Mansfield
Alpine Shire
Rural City of Benalla
Shire of Murrindindi
Shire of Towong