1901 Darling Downs by-election

1901 Darling Downs by-election

14 September 1901 (1901-09-14)
The Darling Downs seat in the House of Representatives
Turnout	7,264
First party Second party   Candidate Littleton Groom Joshua Thomas Bell Party Protectionist Independent Popular vote 4,532 2,687 Percentage 62.78% 37.22% Swing 15.72 37.22
MP before election William Henry Groom Protectionist Elected MP Littleton Groom Protectionist

A by-election was held for the Australian House of Representatives electorate of Darling Downs in Queensland on 14 September 1901, a Saturday. It was triggered by the death of William Henry Groom on 8 August 1901. It was the first by-election of the Australian parliament since Federation. The writ for the by-election was issued on 13 August, nominations for candidates closed on 27 August.

Results

Darling Downs by-election, 1901

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Protectionist	Littleton Groom	4,532	62.78	−15.72
	Independent	Joshua Thomas Bell	2,687	37.22	+37.22
Total formal votes			7,219	99.38	+3.00
Informal votes			45	0.62	−3.00
Turnout			7,264	N/A	N/A
	Protectionist hold		Swing	−15.72

Aftermath

Littleton Groom was elected in the by-election, receiving nearly 63 per cent of the vote. Groom was the third son of the deceased former member, William Groom. The other candidate in the by-election was Joshua Thomas Bell, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland for the electoral district of Dalby.

See also

• List of Australian federal by-elections