Division of Gippsland

Gippsland
Australian House of Representatives Division
Gippsland; Australian House of Representatives Division
	Division of Gippsland in Victoria, as of the 2022 federal election
Created	1901
MP	Darren Chester
Party	National
Namesake	Gippsland
Electors	114,568 (2022)
Area	33,131 km2 (12,792.0 sq mi)
Demographic	Rural

The Division of Gippsland is an Australian electoral division in the state of Victoria. The division was proclaimed in 1900, and was one of the original 65 divisions to be contested at the first federal election. It is named for the Gippsland region of eastern Victoria, which in turn is named for Sir George Gipps, Governor of New South Wales 1838–1846. It includes the towns of Bairnsdale, Morwell, Sale and Traralgon.

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.^[1]

History

It is one of two original divisions in Victoria to have never elected a Labor-endorsed member, the other being Kooyong. It has been held by the National Party and its predecessor, the Country Party, since 1922: it is the only seat the party has held continuously since its creation. On its new boundaries, however, it takes in most of the industrial Latrobe Valley.

Prominent former members include Allan McLean, a former Premier of Victoria who served as a minister under George Reid; and Peter Nixon, a senior minister in the Coalition governments from Harold Holt to Malcolm Fraser.

Then-sitting MP Peter McGauran announced his resignation in April 2008, sparking a June 2008 by-election, with the three major parties all contesting the election. The Nationals retained the seat on an increased margin, electing Darren Chester.

Members

Member	Party	Term	Notes
Allan McLean (1840–1911)	Protectionist	29 March 1901 – 12 December 1906	Previously held the Victorian Legislative Assembly seat of Gippsland North. Served as minister under Reid. Lost seat
George Wise (1853–1950)	Protectionist	12 December 1906 – 26 May 1909	Lost seat
George Wise (1853–1950)	Independent Liberal	26 May 1909 – 31 May 1913	Lost seat
James Bennett (1874–1951)	Liberal	31 May 1913 – 5 September 1914	Lost seat
George Wise (1853–1950)	Independent Labor	5 September 1914 – 22 February 1917	Served as minister under Hughes. Lost seat
George Wise (1853–1950)	Nationalist	22 February 1917 – 16 December 1922	Served as minister under Hughes. Lost seat
Thomas Paterson (1882–1952)	Country	16 December 1922 – 7 July 1943	Served as minister under Bruce and Lyons. Retired
George Bowden (1888–1962)		21 August 1943 – 2 November 1961	Retired
Peter Nixon (1928–)		9 December 1961 – 2 May 1975	Served as minister under Holt, McEwen, Gorton, McMahon and Fraser. Retired
	National Country	2 May 1975 – 16 October 1982
	Nationals	16 October 1982 – 4 February 1983
Peter McGauran (1955–)		5 March 1983 – 9 April 2008	Served as minister under Howard. Resigned to retire from politics
Darren Chester (1967–)		28 June 2008 – present	Served as minister under Turnbull and Morrison. Incumbent

Election results

2022 Australian federal election: Gippsland^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	National	Darren Chester	54,635	54.14	+0.14
	Labor	Jannette Langley	19,404	19.23	−3.97
	One Nation	Greg Hansford	9,443	9.36	+9.36
	Greens	Marjorie Thorpe	8,545	8.47	+2.43
	United Australia	Gregory Forster	4,593	4.55	+0.15
	Liberal Democrats	Jim McDonald	4,286	4.25	+4.25
Total formal votes			100,906	97.04	+2.26
Informal votes			3,073	2.96	−2.26
Turnout			103,979	90.89	−1.49
Two-party-preferred result
	National	Darren Chester	71,205	70.57	+3.90
	Labor	Jannette Langley	29,701	29.43	−3.90
	National hold		Swing	+3.90

References

^ Muller, Damon (14 November 2017). "The process of federal redistributions: a quick guide". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
^ Gippsland, VIC, 2022 Tally Room, Australian Electoral Commission.