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Can Ken Wyatt hold on to Hasluck?
The Conversation, Vol.15 August
The Conversation Media Group
2013
Abstract
The outer suburban Western Australian seat of Hasluck moved centre stage during the last federal election for two reasons. First, the tight result meant that it was not decided until late in the count and, even though it wasn’t going to determine the overall outcome of the election, who won it was important. A Labor win would have given it more seats in the House of Representatives than the Liberals and a stronger claim to government.
But, as it has done in every election since it was created in 2001, Hasluck changed hands and became a marginal Liberal seat: very marginal, as Ken Wyatt holds it with less than a 0.6% margin.
The second reason that Hasluck moved centre stage was that Wyatt became the first Indigenous Australian to be elected to the House of Representatives. He wasn’t the first Wyatt to enter politics, though, as his nephew Ben Wyatt is a leading figure in - and possibly the future leader of - the Labor Party in WA. However, this is subject to the ambitions of current leader Mark McGowan, and possibly retiring federal MP Stephen Smith.
Details
- Title
- Can Ken Wyatt hold on to Hasluck?
- Authors/Creators
- I. Cook (Author/Creator)
- Publication Details
- The Conversation, Vol.15 August
- Publisher
- The Conversation Media Group
- Identifiers
- 991005545259107891
- Copyright
- The Author
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Management and Governance
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Other
- Publisher URL
- http://theconversation.com/au
- Resource Sub-type
- Nonrefereed Article
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