2014 Australian Senate special election in Western Australia

2014 Western Australian Senate election
5 April 2014
6 (of 12) Western Australian Senate seats
  First party Second party
 
Leader Eric Abetz Penny Wong
Party Liberal Labor
Leader's seat Tasmania South Australia
Seats before 6 4
Seats won 3 1
Seats after 6 3
Seat change Steady Decrease 1
Popular vote 435,220 275,094
Percentage 34.06% 21.53%
Swing Decrease 8.93pp Decrease 8.17pp
  Third party Fourth party
 
Leader Christine Milne Clive Palmer
Party Greens Palmer United
Leader's seat Tasmania MP for Fairfax
Seats before 2 —
Seats won 1 1
Seats after 2 1
Seat change Steady New
Popular vote 199,538 157,740
Percentage 15.60% 12.34%
Swing Increase1.64pp New

On 5 April 2014, an Australian Senate special election in Western Australia was held.[1] The special election was held six months after the 2013 Australian federal election. The result of that 2013 election for the Australian Senate in Western Australia was voided on 20 February 2014 by the High Court of Australia, sitting as the Court of Disputed Returns, because 1,375 ballot papers were lost during an official recount in November 2013. The High Court ruled that because the number of lost ballots exceeded the margin for the two remaining Senate seats, the only acceptable remedy was to void the results and hold a special election.[2][3]

Following the election on 5 April, preferences were distributed on 29 April 2014 according to the group voting ticket voting system used at that time.[4][5] The outcome was 3 senators from the Liberal Party of Australia, 1 from the Australian Labor Party, 1 from the Australia Greens and 1 from the Palmer United Party. Compared to the November 2013 result, the Australian Sports Party's Wayne Dropulich was replaced by Dio Wang of the Palmer United Party.

The election is unprecedented in Australian federal politics. An election was held in South Australia in 1907 for the election of one senator under a previous electoral system. Half-Senate elections without a corresponding Australian House of Representatives election have occurred several times due to effluxion of time, the last one in 1970.

The date was set by Sir Peter Cosgrove, the Governor-General of Australia, on the advice of Prime Minister Tony Abbott. However, the onus for setting times and processes fell on the Governor of Western Australia, Malcolm McCusker, on the advice of Colin Barnett, Premier of Western Australia, in McCusker's obligations under the operation of the Election of Senators Act 1903 (WA).

  1. ^ "WA Senate election to be held on April 5". Yahoo! News. 28 February 2014.
  2. ^ "Fresh WA poll throws Canberra into spin". SBS Online. Australian Associated Press. 20 February 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  3. ^ Australian Electoral Commission v Johnston [2014] HCA 5 (18 February 2014), H.C.
  4. ^ "Liberals secure three seats in WA Senate re-run: SMH 29 April 2014". The Sydney Morning Herald. 29 April 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  5. ^ "2014 WA Senate election final distribution of preferences: AEC" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 29 April 2014.