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Division of Menzies

Coordinates: 37°45′47″S 145°11′28″E / 37.763°S 145.191°E / -37.763; 145.191
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Menzies
Australian House of Representatives Division
Division of Menzies in Victoria, as of the 2022 federal election
Created1984
MPKeith Wolahan
PartyLiberal
NamesakeSir Robert Menzies
Electors112,876 (2022)
Area137 km2 (52.9 sq mi)
DemographicOuter metropolitan

The Division of Menzies is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Victoria.

History

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Sir Robert Menzies, the division's namesake

The Division was proclaimed at the redistribution of 14 September 1984, and was first contested at the 1984 election. The division replaced the eastern half of the abolished Division of Diamond Valley, with the western half becoming the Division of Jagajaga. The division was named after Sir Robert Menzies, the longest serving Prime Minister of Australia, who represented the neighbouring division of Kooyong during his time in office.

The Division had always been a safe Liberal seat until the 2022 Australian federal election, with the Liberal Party nearly losing the seat for the first time in its history which was attributed to backlash against the Morrison Government by Chinese Australians.[1] It was first held by Neil Brown, a former minister who served in the Fraser government and who also served as deputy Liberal leader under John Howard from 1985 to 1987. Brown retired in 1991 and was replaced by Kevin Andrews, who held the seat from 1991 to 2022. Andrews was the Father of the House, with the longest continuous tenure of any then current MHR—although Warren Snowdon and Russell Broadbent were first elected earlier.

Boundaries

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Since 1984, federal electoral division boundaries in Australia have been determined at redistributions by a redistribution committee appointed by the Australian Electoral Commission. Redistributions occur for the boundaries of divisions in a particular state, and they occur every seven years, or sooner if a state's representation entitlement changes or when divisions of a state are malapportioned.[2]

The division is located in the north-eastern suburbs of Melbourne. It is bordered by Koonung Creek to the south, and until redistribution in 2018 was also bordered by the Yarra River to the north. It covers the suburbs of Bulleen, Croydon Hills, Doncaster, Doncaster East, Donvale, Park Orchards, Templestowe, Templestowe Lower, North Warrandyte, Warrandyte and Warrandyte South. Additionally, parts of Box Hill, Blackburn, Mitcham, Ringwood North, Warranwood, Wonga Park and Eltham fall under the Division.[3]

Demographics

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The Division of Menzies has a diverse population, with around 45% of its residents being born overseas. Half of the population speak a language other than English at home, with Chinese Australians making around 27% of the population.[4] The seat has the third largest Chinese community of any electorate in all of Australia and the second largest in Victoria after neighbouring Chisholm.

Members

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Image Member Party Term Notes
  Neil Brown
(1940–)
Liberal 1 December 1984
25 February 1991
Previously held the Division of Diamond Valley. Resigned to retire from politics
  Kevin Andrews
(1955–)
11 May 1991
11 April 2022
Served as minister under Howard and Abbott. Lost preselection and retired
  Keith Wolahan
(1977–)
21 May 2022
present
Incumbent

Election results

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2022 Australian federal election: Menzies[5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Keith Wolahan 42,526 42.10 −8.77
Labor Naomi Oakley 33,635 33.30 +2.77
Greens Bill Pheasant 14,289 14.14 +4.01
Liberal Democrats Greg Cheesman 3,646 3.61 +3.61
United Australia Nathan Scaglione 3,643 3.61 +1.19
One Nation John Hayes 2,312 2.29 +2.29
Federation Sanjeev Sabhlok 968 0.96 +0.96
Total formal votes 101,019 96.79 +0.42
Informal votes 3,355 3.21 −0.42
Turnout 104,374 92.58 −2.65
Two-party-preferred result
Liberal Keith Wolahan 51,198 50.68 −6.34
Labor Naomi Oakley 49,821 49.32 +6.34
Liberal hold Swing −6.34
Alluvial diagram for preference flows in the seat of Menzies in the 2022 federal election. checkY indicates at what stage the winning candidate had over 50% of the votes and was declared the winner.
Primary vote results in Menzies (Parties that did not get 5% of the vote are omitted)
  Liberal
  Labor
  Greens
  Australian Democrats
  Australians Against Further Immigration
  Independent
Two-candidate-preferred vote results in Menzies

References

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  1. ^ Anthony, Galloway. "Inside the Liberal Party's debate on how to win back Chinese-Australians and teal voters". www.smh.com.au/. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  2. ^ Muller, Damon (14 November 2017). "The process of federal redistributions: a quick guide". Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  3. ^ "Menzies - Federal Electorate, Candidates, Results". abc.net.au.
  4. ^ "2021 Menzies, Census All persons QuickStats | Australian Bureau of Statistics". Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  5. ^ Menzies, VIC, 2022 Tally Room, Australian Electoral Commission.
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37°45′47″S 145°11′28″E / 37.763°S 145.191°E / -37.763; 145.191