Leslie Massey
Australia's lower house of parliament is divided into single-member electoral districts, or electorates, with the number of electorates apportioned among the states in proportion to their respective populations. As of 2022, there were 151 electorates across Australia, with New South Wales having the most at 47, followed by Victoria with 39, Queensland with 30, and Western Australia with 15. The Australian Capital Territory has 3 electorates, while the Northern Territory has 2. Tasmania and South Australia have 10 and 5 electorates, respectively. The number of electorates in each state can change over time due to variations in population and electoral boundaries.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of electorates in Australia | 409 |
| Number of electorates in New South Wales | 93 |
| Number of electorates in Victoria | 88 |
| Number of electorates in Queensland | 93 |
| Number of electorates in Western Australia | 59 |
| Number of electorates in South Australia | 10 |
| Number of electorates in Tasmania | 5 |
| Number of electorates in Australian Capital Territory | 3 |
| Number of electorates in Northern Territory | 25 |
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What You'll Learn
New South Wales has 47 electorates
Australia's lower house of parliament is divided into electoral districts, with each state and territory having a certain number of electorates. New South Wales has 47 electorates, making it the state with the highest number of electoral divisions in the country.
The electorates in New South Wales are single-member electorates, also known as districts, and they each return one member to the state's lower house. This means that the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, the lower house of the state's parliament, has 47 members.
The number of electorates in each state is determined by the population of the state, with a minimum of five members in the House of Representatives for each original state. The number of enrolled voters in each division cannot vary by more than 10% from the state average, and the boundaries of electorates are drawn by a Redistribution Committee.
New South Wales has had 47 electorates since the 2022 Australian federal election, when the number of divisions across Australia was 151.
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Victoria has 39 electorates
The number of electorates in Victoria is determined by the Electoral Acts, with the area of each district dependent on the legislation. The state's 39 electorates are part of the Victorian Legislative Assembly, which has a total of 88 electoral districts.
The number of enrolled voters in each division cannot vary by more than 10% from the state average. However, the actual number of voters can differ, with larger electorates like Cowper in New South Wales containing 80% more electors than smaller electorates like Solomon in the Northern Territory.
Victoria's electorates are also subject to the requirement that they do not cross state lines. This has resulted in nearby localities being placed in different electorates, such as Albury in New South Wales being part of the electorate of Farrer, while Wodonga in Victoria is part of the electorate of Indi.
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Queensland has 30 electorates
In 2017, the state electoral boundaries were redrawn to ensure each of Queensland's 30 electorates had roughly the same number of voters, upholding the principle of one vote, one value. This process, known as redistribution, is carried out by a Redistribution Committee and is based on the number of enrolled voters. Redistributions apply to the next federal election but not to any by-elections.
The electorates in Queensland are also known as electoral divisions or seats. While most divisions are named after geographical features, some have tenuous connections to their namesakes, such as the Division of Werriwa, which was named after the Aboriginal word for Lake George in the Canberra region but has not contained the lake for many decades.
Queensland's 30 electorates are part of the 151 divisions across Australia, with the number of electorates in each state apportioned according to their respective populations. This ensures that each state has at least five members in the House of Representatives, giving smaller states like Tasmania higher representation than their population would otherwise justify.
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Western Australia has 15 electorates
Western Australia has 59 single-member electoral districts, or electorates, for the Western Australian Legislative Assembly. 42 of these are in the Perth metropolitan area, while the remaining 17 are spread across the rest of the state. In total, there are 15 electorates in Western Australia.
The number of electorates in each state is determined by the population of that state, with each original state guaranteed at least five members in the House of Representatives. This has resulted in Tasmania having a higher representation than its population would usually allow for.
The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is responsible for determining the number of members of the House of Representatives for each state and territory. The AEC also encourages Australians to enrol to vote and maintain accurate details on the electoral roll.
State electoral enrolment reports outline the number of electors in each electoral district and track changes over time. These reports are published by the Western Australian Electoral Commission.
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Northern Territory has 2 electorates
The Northern Territory of Australia has two electorates, despite the fact that its population would usually warrant only one. This is because the quota for seat allocation is set using the harmonic mean for territories, meaning that only around 1.3 quotas are required for two seats, rather than the 1.5 quotas that would be necessary for two seats in a state. This provision has given the Northern Territory higher representation than its population would otherwise justify.
The Northern Territory's two electorates are known as 'electoral divisions' or 'seats'. These are single-member electoral divisions, with each electorate having a similar number of eligible voters. The Northern Territory Legislative Assembly is made up of 25 of these single-member electoral divisions, with mandatory redistributions taking place in the middle of each term to respond to changing demographics.
The Northern Territory's electoral divisions are the smallest in Australia. As of 2019, the quota of electors was 5,555, increasing to 5,649 at the general election in August 2020. The boundaries of each division attempt to match a quota of the average divisional enrolment as closely as possible. Redistributions are organised by the independent Northern Territory Electoral Commission.
The Northern Territory's electorates are subject to the same rules as other electorates in Australia. For example, Section 29 of the Constitution of Australia forbids electorate boundaries from crossing state lines. This does not apply to territories, however, and several current electoral divisions incorporate electors from multiple territories. This is the case for the Division of Lingiari, which covers part of the Northern Territory, as well as the whole of Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands.
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Frequently asked questions
There are 47 divisions and 93 electoral districts in New South Wales.
There are 30 divisions and 93 state electorates in Queensland.
There are 39 divisions and 88 electoral districts in Victoria.
There are 15 divisions and 59 electoral districts in Western Australia.
