Butler

Margin: Labor 0.7%
Region: North Metropolitan
Federal: Pearce

RESULTS AT 2013 ELECTION
HISTORICAL TWO-PARTY RESULTS
PREVIOUS ELECTION RESULTS MAP

Candidates in ballot paper order

JAN VAN NIEKERK Shooters Fishers and Farmers OLA SOMMER Micro Business Party JOHN QUIGLEY Labor (top) LINDA AITKEN Liberal (centre) RYNO FREDERICK JOUBERT Australian Christians SUSAN HODDINOTT One Nation RON SMITH Julie Matheson for WA TOM WEBSTER Greens (bottom)

Butler covers the northernmost coastal reaches of the Perth metropolitan area, encompassing the fringe suburbs of Quinns Rocks, Merriwa and newly emergent Butler, along with hinterland areas around Two Rocks and Yanchep. Rapid growth has caused it to be substantially pared back in the redistribution, losing Clarkson in the south and a large area inland of the coastal strip, of which the only developed part is Banksia Grove. This accounts for the loss of 6300 voters in Clarkson to Burns Beach, 1900 in Banksia Grove to West Swan and 1000 in semi-rural areas to Wanneroo, and cuts 1.1% from the Labor margin.

Prior to the creation of Butler, the northernmost areas of the metropolitan area were accommodated by Joondalup from 1983 to 1989, Wanneroo from 1989 to 2005, and Mindarie from 2005 to 2013. The area has traditionally leaned to Labor, who held the relevant seat except during the period of Richard Court's government from 1993 to 2001, when Wanneroo was held by the Liberals. Mindarie and then Butler have been held for Labor by John Quigley, who came to Mindarie in 2005 after the abolition of his existing seat of Innaloo further to the south. Quigley gained a 1.6% swing against the trend of the 2008 election, giving him enough fat to survive an 8.6% swing in 2013.

John Quigley came to politics with a high public profile as lawyer for the Police Union, having won a series of cases on behalf of officers appearing before the Anti-Corruption Commission. His preselection for Innaloo at the 2001 election was achieved with support from the established Right faction, including his former legal client Brian Burke, after which he secured cross-factional support for his move to Mindarie in 2005. Since April 2009 he has served in shadow cabinet in the Attorney-General portfolio.

Quigley has sustained a reputation as a maverick through his aggressive advocacy for wrongful murder convictee Andrew Mallard, which caused Quigley to be fined $3000 in November 2011 for threatening to reveal the identity of an undercover police officer if he did not provide details of police corruption. This came a month after a defamation action by a former partner was resolved with a public apology from Quigley. In 2005 he was diganosed with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, a rare form of skin cancer.

The Liberal candidate for the second successive election is Linda Aitken, a Wanneroo councillor and registered nurse.