The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the
bicameral
Bicameralism is a type of legislature, one divided into two separate assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate and vote as a single gro ...
Parliament of Victoria
The Parliament of Victoria is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria that follows a Westminster System, Westminster-derived parliamentary system. It consists of the Monarchy in Australia, King, repres ...
in
Australia; the upper house being the
Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at
Parliament House
Parliament House may refer to:
Australia
* Parliament House, Canberra, Parliament of Australia
* Parliament House, Adelaide, Parliament of South Australia
* Parliament House, Brisbane, Parliament of Queensland
* Parliament House, Darwin, Parliame ...
in
Spring Street,
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...
.
The presiding officer of the Legislative Assembly is the
Speaker. There are presently 88 members of the Legislative Assembly elected from single-member divisions.
History
Victoria was proclaimed a Colony on 1 July 1851 separating from the
Colony of New South Wales by an act of the British Parliament. The Legislative Assembly was created on 13 March 1856 with the passing of the ''Victorian Electoral Bill'',
five years after the creation of the original
unicameral
Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one.
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...
Legislative Council. The Assembly first met on 21 November 1856,
[ and consisted of sixty members representing thirty-seven multi and single-member electorates.]
Membership and elections
The Legislative Assembly presently consists of 88 members, each elected in single-member electoral districts, more commonly known as electorates or seats, using preferential voting, which is the same voting system used for the federal lower house, the Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Australian Senate, Senate. Its composition and powers are established in Chapter I of the Constitution of Austra ...
. Members represent approximately the same population in each electorate.
Since 2006, members of the Legislative Assembly are elected for a fixed term of 4 years, with elections occurring on the last Saturday of November every 4 years. There are no limits to the number of terms for which a member may seek election. Casual vacancies are filled at a by-election.
Current membership
Distribution of seats
Officials
Speaker
At the beginning of each new parliamentary term, the Legislative Assembly elects one of its members as a presiding officer, known as the Speaker. If the incumbent Speaker seeks a new term, then the House may re-elect him or her merely by passing a motion; otherwise, a secret ballot is held. In practice, the Speaker is usually a member of the governing party or parties, who have the majority in the House. The Speaker continues to be a member of his or her political party, but it is left to their individual discretion as to whether or not they attend party meetings. The Speaker also continues to carry out his or her ordinary electorate duties as a member of Parliament and must take part in an election campaign to be re-elected as a member of Parliament.
A Deputy Speaker is also elected by the Assembly, who supports and assists the Speaker in the execution of their duties.
Non-member officials
The Legislative Assembly is also supported by a department of civil servants who provide procedural and administrative advice on the running of the Assembly, and performs other functions. The head of the department is the Clerk of the Assembly, who is assisted by a deputy clerk, an assistant clerk committees and an assistant clerk procedure.[Staff of the Legislative Assembly]
/ref>
The Assembly is also assisted by a serjeant-at-arms, who at present also holds the position of assistant clerk procedure.[
]
2022 Victorian election
Results
{, class="wikitable" style="text-align:right; margin-bottom:0"
, +Legislative Assembly ( IRV) – ( CV)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 ...
, 416,069
, 11.50
, +0.79
, 4
, 1
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Family First
, 110,389
, 3.05
, +3.05
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Animal Justice
, 90,797
, 2.51
, +0.69
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Freedom
, 61,812
, 1.71
, +1.71
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Victorian Socialists
, 48,865
, 1.35
, +0.91
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Democratic Labour
, 42,385
, 1.17
, +0.48
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Liberal Democratic
, 12,791
, 0.35
, +0.23
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Shooters, Fishers and Farmers
, 11,588
, 0.32
, −0.37
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Reason
Reason is the capacity of Consciousness, consciously applying logic by Logical consequence, drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activ ...
, 10,907
, 0.30
, −0.06
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Pauline Hanson's One Nation
, 8,077
, 0.22
, +0.22
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Justice
Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...
, 7,927
, 0.22
, −0.04
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Legalise Cannabis
, 5,838
, 0.16
, +0.16
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", New Democrats
, 4,874
, 0.13
, +0.13
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Angry Victorians
, 3,037
, 0.08
, +0.08
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Health Australia
, 862
, 0.02
, +0.02
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Transport Matters
, 605
, 0.02
, −0.27
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Companions and Pets
, 526
, 0.01
, +0.01
, 0
,
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Independents
, 196,796
, 5.44
, −0.63
, 0
, 3
, -
! colspan="8" ,
, -
, colspan="3" style="text-align:left;" , Total valid votes
, 3,617,000
, 94.59
, –
, –
, –
, -
, colspan="3" style="text-align:left;" , Invalid/blank votes
, 211,791
, 5.53
, –
, –
, –
, -
, colspan="3" style="text-align:left;" , Total
, 3,828,791
, 100
, –
, 87
,
, -
, colspan="3" style="text-align:left;" , Registered voters / Turnout
, 4,394,465
, 87.13
, –
, –
, –
, -
! colspan="8" , Two-party-preferred vote*
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Labor
, 1,989,350
, 55.00
, −2.30
, 56
, 1
, -
, ,
, style="text-align:left;" colspan="2", Coalition
, 1,627,650
, 45.00
, +2.30
, 27
,
* TPP votes are calculated based on the estimate provided by the ABC election computer overseen by Antony Green
Antony John Green (born 2 March 1960) is an Australian psephologist and commentator. He is the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's chief election analyst.
Early years and background
Born in Warrington, Lancashire, in northern England, Gr ...
.
Procedure
Most legislation is initiated in the Legislative Assembly. The party or coalition with a majority of seats in the lower house is invited by the Governor to form government. The leader of that party subsequently becomes Premier of Victoria, and their senior colleagues become ministers responsible for various portfolios. As Australian political parties traditionally vote along party lines, almost all legislation introduced by the governing party will pass through the legislative assembly.
Committees
* Privileges Committee
* Standing Orders Committee
See also
* 2018 Victorian state election
* List of members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly
* List of elections in Victoria
* List of Victorian state by-elections
* Parliaments of the Australian states and territories
Notes
References
External links
VLA Hansard Assembly Members ListElections since 1856Roles
{{Political parties in Victoria (Australia)
Parliament of Victoria
Victoria
1856 establishments in Australia