Electorate: Kingsley
Margin: Liberal 4.6%
Region: North Metropolitan
Federal: Cowan
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The candidates
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ANDREA MITCHELL Liberal (top) DIANA MACTIERNAN SOPHIE ANN MASON BRIAN CORR |
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Electorate analysis: A Liberal gain at the 2008 election, Kingsley covers three suburbs between the Mitchell Freeway and Wanneroo Road roughly 20 kilometres north of the city, from Greenwood north through Kingsley to Woodvale. The redistribution has supplemented this with 1500 voters in Warwick south of Warwick Road, previously in Girrawheen, which adds 0.1% to the Liberal margin. The electorate was created to accommodate new development at the 1989 election, and was held comfortably for the Liberals at its first three elections by Court government Attorney-General Cheryl Edwardes.
Kingsley emerged as a marginal seat after the 2001 election, when a 7.3% swing cut Edwardes’ margin to 2.9%. Labor vigorously pursued the seat when Edwardes retired at the 2005 election, and may have been assisted by discontent over the Liberals’ nomination of Edwardes’ husband Colin, Wanneroo councillor and a principal of the “Northern Alliance” faction of northern suburbs Liberal potentates. Dissension in the local Liberal camp was indicated by the candidacy of Marie Evans, wife of former federal Cowan MP Richard Evans, who attracted 11.5% under the “Community 1st” banner. Most blamed the attempted Edwardes succession when the seat emerged as Labor’s only gain of the election, although the 3.3% swing was not greatly higher than the northern suburbs average.
The successful Labor candidate was Judy Hughes, a former Wanneroo councillor and “Old Right” faction associate. Hughes’s margin was worn down from 0.8% to 0.1% by redistribution, and was confortably recovered by the Liberals at the 2008 election on the back of 4.6% swing. The winning Liberal candidate was Andrea Mitchell, who as president of Tennis West was director of the Hopman Cup event. Labor’s candidate for the coming election is Brian Corr, who represents the corresponding local ward on Joondalup City Council.
Analysis written by William Bowe. All post-redistribution margins are as calculated by Antony Green at ABC Elections. Read William’s blog, The Poll Bludger.