In 1928, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives in unusual circumstances. Jones stood for the Labor Party in Indi, and was initially a heavy underdog in this strongly conservative seat. However Country Party incumbent Robert Cook mistakenly failed to lodge his renomination papers, leaving Jones to take the seat unopposed. This is one of the few known instances in the history of the Australian Parliament that a candidate has lost his or her seat in this way.
Jones narrowly held onto the seat in 1929, seeing off a spirited challenge from Cook. He was defeated in the United Australia Party landslide of 1931, suffering a 14-point swing. The Labor Party has not come close to winning the seat since then, only tallying 45 percent of the two-party vote once.
^Ainsley Symons (2012), 'Democratic Labor Party members in the Victorian Parliament of 1955-1958', Recorder (Australian Society for the Study of Labour History, Melbourne Branch) No. 275, November, pp. 4-5.
^"Jones, Paul". Brighton Cemetery: Historic Interments. Retrieved 15 June 2008.