Division of Eden-Monaro
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use Australian English Template:Infobox Australian electorate
The Division of Eden-Monaro (Template:IPAc-en) is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales. It includes the cities of Queanbeyan, Goulburn, Cooma, Bega and Eden.
GeographyEdit
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.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Eden-Monaro currently includes Goulburn Mulwaree Council, Queanbeyan–Palerang Regional Council, Snowy Monaro Regional Council, Bega Valley Shire and part of Eurobodalla Shire, including Narooma, Bodalla and Tuross Head.
HistoryEdit
Template:Multiple image The division was proclaimed in 1900, and was one of the original 65 divisions to be contested at the first federal election. It is named for the town of Eden and the Monaro district of southern New South Wales.
Its boundaries have changed relatively little throughout its history. It originally extended to the Molonglo River through Canberra (where it bordered on Werriwa) and St Georges Basin in the north, the Great Dividing Range and the Brindabellas in the west, the Victorian border in the south and the Pacific Ocean in the east.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It currently includes the cities of Queanbeyan and Goulburn and the towns of Bega and Cooma, as it did before the enlargement of Parliament at the 1984 distribution when it lost Goulburn. Between the 2014 distribution<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }} [26–27]</ref> and the 2024 distribution it completely surrounded the Australian Capital Territory, but otherwise it has been generally east of the territory. At the 2024 distribution, the local government areas of Yass Valley and Snowy Valleys were removed from the electorate and replaced by Goulburn Mulwaree from Hume. It also acquired the small town of Tuross Head from Gilmore.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Until 1943 non-Labor parties held the seat for all but three years. Since then, it has been consistently marginal, split between provincial territory that votes strongly for Labor and rural areas that vote equally strongly for the Liberals (and their predecessors) or the Nationals. However, it was in Labor hands for all but one term from 1943 to 1975.
Up to the 2016 election, Eden-Monaro was long regarded as Australia's most well-known "bellwether seat". From 1972 to 2013, Eden-Monaro was won by the party that also won the election. During this time, all its sitting members were defeated at the polls – none retired or resigned.
Liberal incumbent Peter Hendy was defeated by Labor's Mike Kelly at the 2016 election. Kelly had previously represented Eden-Monaro from 2007 to 2013. Kelly's 2016 victory made him the seat's first opposition MP elected since 1969; it was also the first time since then that the non-Labor parties had been in government without holding Eden-Monaro. The nation's new bellwether became the seat of Robertson – continually won by the party that also won government since the 1983 election. "Best" bellwether aside, ABC psephologist Antony Green classed a total of eleven electorates as bellwethers in his 2016 election guide.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Labor’s Kristy McBain became the first woman to represent the division when she narrowly held the seat in the 2020 Eden-Monaro by-election.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> At the 2022 election, she held the seat with a large swing to her, boosting her two-party majority to eight percent, the strongest result in the seat for either side of politics since 1934.
MembersEdit
.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}
Election resultsEdit
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}} Template:Excerpt Template:Excerpt