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1973 New South Wales Labor Party leadership spill

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1973 New South Wales Labor Party leadership spill
← 1968 3 December 1973 1986 →
Leadership election
 
Candidate Neville Wran Pat Hills Kevin Stewart
Caucus vote 18 17 9
After preferences 22 22 eliminated
Electorate Bass Hill Phillip Canterbury
Faction Unaligned Right Right
Leader before election

Pat Hills

 Elected Leader

Neville Wran

Deputy leadership election
 
Candidate Jack Ferguson Syd Einfeld Peter Cox
Caucus vote unknown unknown unknown
After preferences 23 21 eliminated
Electorate Bass Hill Waverley Auburn
Faction Left
Deputy before election

Syd Einfeld

 Elected Deputy

Jack Ferguson

The 1973 New South Wales Labor Party leadership spill was held on 3 December 1973 to elect the leader of the New South Wales Labor Party and, ex officio, Leader of the Opposition.[1][2]

Incumbent leader Pat Hills, who had led Labor to a defeat at the state election on 17 November 1973, was defeated by Neville Wran.[3] Wran had been elected to the seat of Bass Hill at the state election, having previously served as a member of the Legislative Council.[4]

Wran tied with Hills on 22 votes each after the supporters of third-placed candidate Kevin Stewart had their preferences distributed.[5] However, as Wran had won the most first preference votes, he was elected leader.[6][7] He was factionally unaligned, with his support coming from MPs in both the Left and Right factions.[8]

At the next state election in 1976, Wran led Labor to a narrow victory over the Liberal-National Coalition government.[9] He led the party to further victories in 1978, 1981 and 1984, before resigning as Premier in 1986.[10]

Candidates

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Leader

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Declared

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Candidate Electorate Faction Announced
  Pat Hills Phillip Right[11] 26 November 1973[12]
  Kevin Stewart Canterbury Right[13] 27 November 1973[14]
  Neville Wran Bass Hill Unaligned[15] 20 November 1973[16]

Declined

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Candidate Electorate Faction Declined
  Harry Jensen Munmorah 27 November 1973[14]

Deputy leader

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Declared

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Candidate Electorate Faction Announced
  Peter Cox Auburn 27 November 1973[14]
  Syd Einfeld Waverley November 1973[14]
  Jack Ferguson Merrylands Left[17] November 1973[14]

References

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  1. ^ "Liberal seats in danger". The Canberra Times. Vol. 48, no. 13, 596. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 19 November 1973. p. 1. Retrieved 11 January 2025 – via Trove.
  2. ^ "Few changes in new NSW Cabinet". The Canberra Times. Vol. 48, no. 13, 606. Sydney. 30 November 1973 [29 November 1973]. p. 3. Retrieved 11 January 2025 – via Trove.
  3. ^ "Nifty Nev showed Labor how to win again". ABC News. 20 April 2014. Archived from the original on 14 October 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  4. ^ "Neville Wran: his life and career – timeline". The Guardian. 21 April 2014. Archived from the original on 3 October 2021. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  5. ^ "Magic carpets don't exist so stand by for the hearse". The Sydney Morning Herald. 10 September 2003. Archived from the original on 11 January 2025. Retrieved 11 January 2025. He won only after a countback, 18 primary votes to 17, after he and Hills had tied 22 each on the preferences of a third candidate.
  6. ^ "Wran Wins Poll". The Queanbeyan Age. Sydney. 3 December 1973. p. 1. Retrieved 11 January 2025 – via Trove.
  7. ^ "NSW Labor Party leaders change". Tribune. No. 1833. 4 December 1973. p. 12. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  8. ^ "New leaders for NSW Opposition". The Canberra Times. Vol. 48, no. 13, 609. Sydney. 3 December 1973 [4 December 1973]. p. 7. Retrieved 11 January 2025 – via Trove.
  9. ^ "New State Leader in caucus defeat". The Canberra Times. Vol. 48, no. 13, 616. Sydney. 12 December 1973 [11 December 1973]. p. 3. Retrieved 11 January 2025 – via Trove.
  10. ^ AAP (14 December 1973) [13 December 1973]. "'Shadow' ministry". The Canberra Times. Vol. 48, no. 13, 618. Sydney. p. 7. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  11. ^ "Labor Right Fails in NSW". Tribune. No. 1831. Sydney. 20 November 1973. p. 3. Retrieved 11 January 2025 – via Trove. The second reason is the incapacity of the NSW Rightwing Labor machine, typified by its parliamentary leader Pat Hills, to present a viable alternative to the reactionary Askin Government.
  12. ^ "Rightwing losing grip in NSW Labor". Tribune. No. 1834. Sydney. 11 December 1973. p. 12. Retrieved 11 January 2025 – via Trove.
  13. ^ "The health minister who put the bite on dentists". The Sydney Morning Herald. 29 August 2006. Archived from the original on 11 January 2025. Retrieved 11 January 2025. They became foot-soldiers in the Catholic faction dedicated to fighting left-wing and communist influence in the party.
  14. ^ a b c d e "Candidate for ALP top post". The Canberra Times. Sydney. 28 November 1973 [27 November 1973]. p. 7. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  15. ^ Cockburn, Milton (22 April 2014). "Neville Wran: Labor premier had a golden run". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 15 June 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  16. ^ "Leadership". The Canberra Times. Vol. 48, no. 13, 598. Sydney. 21 November 1973 [20 November 1973]. p. 3. Retrieved 11 January 2025 – via Trove.
  17. ^ Leigh, Andrew (9 June 2010) [November 2000]. "Factions and Fractions: A Case Study of Power Politics in the Australian Labor Party" (PDF). andrewleigh.org. Vol. 35, no. 3. Australasian Political Studies Association. pp. 427–448. doi:10.1080/713649348. ISSN 1363-030X. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 September 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
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