Results of the 1887 New South Wales colonial election

New South Wales colonial election, 4 – 26 February 1887 [1]
Legislative Assembly
<< 1885–1889 >>

Enrolled voters
Votes cast 128,787 Turnout 57.84 −3.26
Informal votes 2,275 Informal 1.74 −0.27
Summary of votes by party
Party Primary votes % Swing Seats Change
  Free Trade 78,238 60.75 n/a 79 n/a
  Protectionist 42,354 32.89 n/a 37 n/a
  Ind. Free Trade 4,159 3.23 n/a 4 n/a
  Ind. Protectionist 3,105 2.41 n/a 4 n/a
  Independent 931 0.72 n/a 0 n/a
Total 252,004     124  

The 1887 New South Wales colonial election was for 124 members representing 74 electoral districts. The election was conducted on the basis of a simple majority or first-past-the-post voting system. In this election there were 35 multi-member districts returning 87 members and 37 single member districts giving a total of 124 members. In the multi-member districts each elector could vote for as many candidates as there were vacancies. 13 districts were uncontested. This was the first election at which there were recognisable political parties.[1] The average number of enrolled voters per seat was 1,984, ranging from Boorowa (1,103) to Canterbury (3,161).[2]

  1. ^ a b Green, Antony. "1887 election totals". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
  2. ^ Green, Antony. "1887 Turnout". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 17 April 2020.