Australian Politics and Policy - Senior, 2019a

New South Wales
Election Premier/s
between
elections*
1938 Bertram Stevens
Alexander Mair
Main support in Assembly
United Australia–Country Coalition
United Australia–Country Coalition
Government status
Majority
Majority
*The first premier listed next to each election date is the first leader who secured office as a
result of the election. Premiers who continued to govern for short periods after losing an
election until a successor was sworn in are not included.
Postwar Labor dominance
William McKell, who replaced Lang as Labor leader in 1939, won a landslide
victory in 1941. Labor would dominate NSW politics over the following eight
decades, governing for more than two-thirds of that time, over three lengthy
periods: 1941 to 1965, 1976 to 1988 and 1995 to 2011 (see Table 3).
McKell and many of his colleagues had been scarred by the Lang years and
were determined to create a new style of Labor government. McKell’s emphasis
was on internal unity, political moderation and efficient administration. During his
two terms, he implemented significant social, industrial and environmental reforms
and established a model of negotiated compromise between the ALP machine and
Labor governments that continued under his successors. This model, along with
politicalskillandcontinuousprosperityinthelongpostwarboom,helpedLaborto
retain office until 1965. 32
Labor won the 1976 election under Neville Wran, who was premier for the next
decade.AswellasmaintainingtheMcKellmodel,hetookaccountoftheemergence
of new policy issues concerning quality of life and equality of opportunity. Wran was
re-elected with record majorities in 1978 and 1981, and less easily in 1984. 33
Bob Carr led Labor back to office with a narrow victory in 1995, before winning
easily in 1999 and 2003. Economic efficiency and environmental sustainability were
the key elements of the Carr model. He became the longest continuously serving
NSW premier, remaining in office for 10 years and four months. Carr’s premiership
was followed by a period of instability and rapid leadership change. The ALP’s
organisational wing clashed with the government over electricity privatisation. The
influence of back-room figures such as Eddie Obeid, who was subsequently
imprisoned for corruption, was a major issue. At the 2011 election, Labor suffered its
worst defeat since 1904, winning just 36 per cent of the two-party preferred vote. 34
32 Clune 1988; Cunneen 2000.
33 Bramston 2006; Chaples, Nelson and Turner 1985; Steketee and Cockburn 1986.
34 Clune 2005; Clune and Smith 2012; Dodkin 2003; West and Morris 2003.
223