Canberra Liberals

The Canberra Liberals, officially known as the Liberal Party of Australia (Australian Capital Territory Division), is the division of the Liberal Party of Australia in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The party has been in opposition in the ACT Legislative Assembly for much of its existence, but held power with the support of minor parties and independents between 1989 and 1991 and again between 1995 and 2001.^[2] As of 2025, it is the only state or territory division of either major party to be unrepresented in the federal parliament.

History

The first Liberal branch in Canberra was formed in order to field a candidate in the newly created Division of Australian Capital Territory at the 1949 federal election. The first meeting of the branch was held at the Albert Hall on 27 January 1949. The inaugural meeting of the Canberra women's branch was held on 29 June 1949. By 1961, there were three branches of the Liberal Party in the ACT, and a branch of the Young Liberals was created around the same time.^[3]

The party held a number of seats in the Australian Capital Territory House of Assembly throughout its existence. In the first election under self-government in 1989 the Liberal Party won four seats.^[4] The Liberals were led in the Assembly by Trevor Kaine, initially in opposition but in December 1989 the party formed a coalition known as the Alliance with the Residents Rally that lasted from December 1989 until June 1991 when a dispute over school closures broke up the coalition and returned the parties to opposition.^[5] Kaine was briefly replaced as leader by Gary Humphries,^[6] but regained the position a month later.^[7] Two years later he was replaced by Kate Carnell.^[8]

At the 1995 election the Liberals won 7 seats^[9] and Carnell formed a minority government with the support of independent members Michael Moore and Paul Osborne. Carnell served as Chief Minister until October 2000 when she resigned in advance of a no confidence motion over the increased costs of the Canberra Stadium.^[10] She was succeeded by Humphries but the party lost power in the 2001 election.^[11] It has been in opposition ever since, having installed and removed multiple leaders including Brendan Smyth, Bill Stefaniak, Zed Seselja, Jeremy Hanson, Alistair Coe and Elizabeth Lee.^[12] The current leader of the party is Leanne Castley.^[13]

In the 2022 federal election, Seselja, who was the sole Canberra Liberals parliamentarian in federal parliament, lost his Senate seat to independent David Pocock.^[14] This left the Canberra Liberals with no representation in the 47th Parliament. A review into the territory division's defeat at the election would be headed by former WA Liberal leader Mike Nahan and former Victorian Liberal senator Helen Kroger. The review would include an examination of the Canberra Liberals and its electoral performance among different voter segments, and would propose strategies to regain federal representation.^[15]

Leadership

Leaders

Deputy Leaders

Election results

Legislative Assembly

References

1. ^ "Our Structure". canberraliberals.org.au. Canberra, ACT: Canberra Liberals. Archived 11 January 2026 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 11 January 2026.
2. ^ CONSTITUTION of the LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA (AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY DIVISION) Archived 21 March 2020 at the Wayback Machine, as amended November 2018
3. ^ "Our History". Canberra Liberals. 12 June 2013. Archived 9 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
4. ^ "List of elected candidates - 1989 Election". Elections ACT. 6 January 2015. Archived 12 June 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
5. ^ "'The accidental chief minister': Trevor Kaine 25 years on". Canberratimes.com.au. 2014-12-12. Archived 9 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
6. ^ "15 Jun 1991 - Kaine defers to Humphries after all - Trove". Trove.nla.gov.au. 1991-06-15. Archived 9 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
7. ^ "21 Jul 1991 - Humphries ditched - Trove". Trove.nla.gov.au. 1991-07-21. Archived 9 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
8. ^ "22 Apr 1993 - The ten-minute coup that stopped a hemorrhage - Trove". Canberra Times (Act : 1926 - 1995). Trove.nla.gov.au. 1993-04-22. p. 1. Archived 9 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
9. ^ "List of elected candidates - 1995 Election". Elections ACT. 6 January 2015. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
10. ^ "ACT's controversial former chief minister Kate Carnell has returned to the main game selling a forceful message". Canberratimes.com.au. 2012-03-31. Archived 9 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
11. ^ "Liberals Analysis. ACT Election Guide 2004.". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived 14 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
12. ^ Green, Antony. "Election Preview". ABC News. Archived 20 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-07-09.
13. ^ "Leanne Castley elected Canberra Liberals leader". The Canberra Times. 2024-10-30. Retrieved 2024-10-31.
14. ^ "David Pocock officially declared first independent senator for the ACT, unseating Liberal Zed Seselja". ABC News. 14 June 2022. Archived 2 July 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
15. ^ "Review into Canberra Liberals election defeat to tackle independents 'challenge'". Riotact. 20 July 2022. Archived 24 July 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 1 August 2022.