| Parliament name |
Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name |
House of Representatives |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
Senate
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
7 September 2013 |
| Purpose of elections |
The Liberal/National Coalition led by Mr. Tony Abbott was victorious in the 2013 elections, winning 90 out of 150 seats in the House of Representatives and 17 of the 40 seats renewed in the Senate. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's Australian Labor Party (ALP) took 55 seats in the House and 12 in the Senate. He conceded defeat and resigned as Prime Minister and ALP leader. On 17 September, Mr. Abbott was sworn in as Prime Minister by Governor-General Quentin Bryce.
During the election campaign, the Liberal/National Coalition pledged to abolish the mining and carbon taxes introduced by the ALP government in 2012, arguing that the high tax rates on carbon dioxide made the country's industry uncompetitive. Mr. Rudd, who had ousted the then Prime Minister Julia Gillard as ALP leader in late June 2013, said he would maintain the mining tax but replace the carbon tax by an emissions trading scheme. Both leaders proposed tougher policies on asylum seekers, proposing to redirect all people arriving by boat to Papua New Guinea. |
Date of previous elections: 21 August 2010
Date of dissolution of the outgoing legislature: 5 August 2013
Timing of election: Upon normal expiry
Expected date of next elections: September 2016
Number of seats at stake: 150 (full renewal)
Number of candidates: 1,188 (861 men, 327 women)
Percentage of women candidates: 27.53%
Number of parties contesting the election: 36
Number of parties winning seats: 5
Alternation of power: Yes
Number of parties in government: 4
Names of parties in government: Liberal, Liberal National Party, The Nationals and Country Liberals (NT)
Date of the first session of the new parliament: 12 November 2013
Name of the new Speaker: Ms. Bronwyn Bishop (Liberal Party) |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 7 September 2013 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
14'722'754
13'726'070 (93.23%)
|
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
|
|
|
|
| Liberal National coalition |
90
|
|
|
|
|
| Australian Labor Party (ALP) |
55
|
|
|
|
|
| Independents |
2
|
|
|
|
|
| Greens |
1
|
|
|
|
|
| KatterÂ’s Australian Party |
1
|
|
|
|
|
| Palmer United Party |
1
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
111
39
26.00%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Note on the distribution of seats according to political parties:
The Liberal/National Coalition comprised the Liberal Party, the Liberal National Party, the Nationals and the Country Liberals. These parties fielded candidates separately in the Senate elections.
Sources:
Parliament (18.10.2013, 01.11.2013)
http://vtr.aec.gov.au |
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