This article provides information on candidates who stood for the 1903 Australian federal election. The election was held on 16 December 1903.
By-elections, appointments and defections
By-elections and appointments On 14 September 1901, Littleton Groom (Protectionist) was elected to replace William Henry Groom (Protectionist) as the member for Darling Downs. On 26 March 1902, William Hartnoll (Free Trade) was elected to replace Frederick Piesse (Free Trade) as one of the five members for Tasmania. On 21 January 1903, Robert Reid (Free Trade) was appointed as a Victorian Senator to replace Sir Frederick Sargood (Free Trade). On 20 May 1903, Henry Saunders (Free Trade) was appointed as a Western Australian Senator to replace Norman Ewing (Free Trade). On 4 September 1903, George Reid (Free Trade) won the seat of East Sydney, which he had re-contested to assert his leadership. On 8 October 1903, Charles Mackellar (Protectionist) was appointed as a New South Wales Senator to replace Richard O'Connor (Protectionist).
Defections In 1902, Free Trade MP Alexander Poynton (Grey) joined the Labour Party. South Australian Free Trade MP Sir Frederick Holder had resigned from the party by the 1903 election after being elected Speaker of the House of Representatives in 1901. He contested the election as an independent, but was unopposed by the other parties. Queensland Protectionist MP Thomas Macdonald-Paterson (Brisbane) lost pre-selection and contested the election as an independent. Tasmanian Free Trade Senator Henry Dobson contested the election as a member of the Tariff Reform Party. Queensland Protectionist Senator Thomas Glassey lost pre-selection, and contested the election as an independent.
Redistributions and seat changes
South Australia and Tasmania, which for the first federal election were contested as single electorates for the House of Representatives: South Australia was divided into seven electorates: Adelaide, Angas, Barker, Boothby, Grey, Hindmarsh and Wakefield. Of the seven members elected for the division of South Australia in 1901, Charles Kingston (Protectionist) contested Adelaide, Paddy Glynn (Free Trade) contested Angas, Sir Langdon Bonython (Protectionist) contested Barker, Lee Batchelor (Labour) and Vaiben Louis Solomon (Free Trade) contested Boothby, Alexander Poynton (Labour) contested Grey, Sir Frederick Holder (the Speaker) contested Wakefield, and no sitting members contested Hindmarsh. Tasmania was divided into five electorates: Bass, Darwin, Denison, Franklin and Wilmot. Of the five members elected for the division of Tasmania in 1901, William Hartnoll (Free Trade) contested Bass, King O'Malley (Labour) contested Darwin, Sir Philip Fysh (Protectionist) and Norman Cameron (Free Trade) contested Denison, Sir Edward Braddon (Free Trade) contested Wilmot, and no sitting members contested Franklin. The Free Trade MP for Lang, Francis McLean, contested Hume.
Retiring Members and Senators
Protectionist Sir Edmund Barton MP (Hunter, NSW) George Cruickshank MP (Gwydir, NSW) Chester Manifold MP (Corangamite, Vic) Senator Sir John Downer (SA) Senator Charles Mackellar (NSW)
Free Trade Samuel Cooke MP (Wannon, Vic) Arthur Groom MP (Flinders, Vic) Sir William McMillan MP (Wentworth, NSW) Senator John Ferguson (Qld) — seat declared vacant prior to election due to lack of attendance Senator Edward Harney (WA) Senator Robert Reid (Vic)
Independent Alexander Paterson MP (Capricornia, Qld)
House of Representatives Sitting members at the time of the election are shown in bold text. Successful candidates are highlighted in the relevant colour. Where there is possible confusion, an asterisk (*) is also used.
New South Wales
ElectorateHeld byProtectionist candidateFree Trade candidateLabour candidateOther candidates Barrier Labour Josiah Thomas John Dunstan (Ind Prot)Bland Labour John Longmuir Chris Watson Canobolas Labour Thomas Brown Cowper Protectionist Francis Clarke Henry Lee Dalley Free Trade Bill Wilks Selina Anderson (Ind Prot)William Burns (Ind Prot)Darling Labour Denis Acton William Spence East Sydney Free Trade Robert Peel George Reid Thomas Thrower Eden-Monaro Protectionist Austin Chapman Gwydir Protectionist James Macarthur-Onslow William Webster Robert Barton (Ind Prot)Hume Protectionist Sir William Lyne Francis McLean Hunter Protectionist Frank Liddell Arthur Rae James Waller (Ind Prot)Illawarra Free Trade George Fuller Lang Free Trade Thomas Roseby Elliot Johnson Tom Keegan William Cullam (Ind FT)Macquarie Free Trade William Sandford Sydney Smith Newcastle Labour Richard Bowles David Watkins New England Protectionist William Sawers Edmund Lonsdale North Sydney Free Trade Dugald Thomson Parkes Free Trade Bruce Smith Charles Dyer Edward Beeby (Ind FT)Varney Parkes (Ind FT)Hampton Slatyer (Ind FT)Parramatta Free Trade Joseph Cook John Strachan (Ind Prot)Richmond Protectionist Thomas Ewing Reginald Atkinson Riverina Protectionist John Chanter Robert Blackwood Robertson Free Trade Henry Willis William Wall (Ind Prot)South Sydney Free Trade George Edwards Edward Riley Wentworth Free Trade John Dalley Willie Kelly Werriwa Free Trade Alfred Conroy Arthur Barrett West Sydney Labour Edward Warren Billy Hughes
Queensland
ElectorateHeld byProtectionist candidateLabour candidateOther candidates Brisbane Protectionist William Morse Millice Culpin Thomas Macdonald-Paterson (Ind Prot)Capricornia Ind. Free Trade George Curtis David Thomson Thomas Ryan (Ind Prot)Darling Downs Protectionist Littleton Groom Herbert Labour William White Fred Bamford Kennedy Labour Frederick Johnson Charles McDonald Maranoa Labour Daniel Leahy Jim PageMoreton Ind. Labour George Harrison James Wilkinson (Ind Lab)Oxley Protectionist Richard Edwards William Reinhold Wide Bay Labour George Stupart Andrew Fisher
South Australia
ElectorateProtectionist candidateFree Trade candidateLabour candidateIndependent candidate(s) Adelaide Charles Kingston Angas Paddy Glynn Barker Sir Langdon Bonython Boothby Vaiben Louis Solomon Lee Batchelor Grey Alexander Poynton Hindmarsh James Shaw James Hutchison Wakefield Sir Frederick Holder
Tasmania
ElectorateProtectionist candidateFree Trade candidateLabour candidateOther candidates Bass David Storrer William Hartnoll Darwin James Brickhill King O'Malley James Gaffney (Ind)Denison Sir Philip Fysh Norman Cameron Andrew Kirk Franklin Russell Macnaghten William Clifford (RT)Wentworth Hardy (Ind)William McWilliams* (RT)Henry Tinning (RT)Wilmot John Cheek Sir Edward Braddon
Victoria
ElectorateHeld byProtectionist candidateFree Trade candidateLabour candidateOther candidates Balaclava Protectionist Sir George Turner Ballaarat Protectionist Alfred Deakin Bendigo Protectionist Sir John Quick Cyril James David Smith Bourke Protectionist James Hume Cook Martin Hannah Rothwell Grundy (Ind Prot)Corangamite Protectionist Agar Wynne Gratton Wilson Desmond Dunne (Ind Prot)John Woods (Ind Prot)Corinella Protectionist James McCay Corio Protectionist Richard Crouch Donald Macdonald John Reed Echuca Protectionist James McColl Henry Williams Flinders Free Trade Arthur Nichols James Gibb Arthur Wilson Louis Smith (Ind Prot)Gippsland Protectionist Allan McLean Grampians Free Trade Archibald Ritchie Thomas Skene Patrick McGrath Albert Andrews (Ind Lab)Indi Protectionist Isaac Isaacs Kooyong Free Trade Robert Barbour William Knox Laanecoorie Protectionist Carty Salmon David Bevan Melbourne Protectionist Sir Malcolm McEacharn William Maloney Melbourne Ports Protectionist Samuel Mauger James Mathews Harry Foran (Ind Lab)Mernda Protectionist Robert Harper Frederick Hickford Edward Hodges (Ind Prot)Moira Protectionist Thomas Kennedy Albert Palmer Northern Melbourne Protectionist Henry Higgins Samuel Painter (Ind Prot)Southern Melbourne Labour James Ronald Ernest Joske (Ind Prot)Charles Monteith (Ind Prot)John Sloss (Ind Prot)Wannon Free Trade Patrick Hogan Arthur Robinson Thomas White Wimmera Protectionist Pharez Phillips Max Hirsch John Gray (Ind Prot)Yarra Labour William Wilson Frank Tudor
Western Australia
ElectorateHeld byProtectionist candidateFree Trade candidateLabour candidate Coolgardie Labour Hugh MahonFremantle Free Trade Elias Solomon William CarpenterKalgoorlie Free Trade John Kirwan Charlie FrazerPerth Labour Harry Venn James FowlerSwan Protectionist Sir John Forrest
Senate Sitting Senators are listed in bold. Tickets that elected at least one Senator are highlighted in the relevant colour. Successful candidates are identified by an asterisk (*).
New South Wales Three seats were up for election. The Protectionist Party was defending one seat. The Free Trade Party was defending two seats. Free Trade Senators Albert Gould, Edward Millen and James Walker were not up for re-election.
Protectionist candidatesFree Trade candidatesLabour candidatesSocialist Labor candidatesOther candidates Nathaniel CollinsJohn Cunneen John Gray*John Neild*Edward Pulsford* Arthur Griffith Herbert DrakeJames MoroneyAndrew Thomson Mary Moore-Bentley (Ind)Henry Fletcher (Ind)Nellie Martel (Ind FT)
Queensland Three seats were up for election. The Protectionist Party was defending one seat. The Free Trade Party was defending one seat. The Labour Party was defending one seat. Protectionist Senator James Drake and Labour Senators Anderson Dawson and William Higgs were not up for re-election.
Protectionist candidatesLabour candidatesIndependent candidates John BartholomewJohn MurrayWalter Tunbridge Thomas Givens*James Stewart*Harry Turley* Thomas Glassey
South Australia Three seats were up for election. The Protectionist Party was defending one seat. The Free Trade Party was defending one seat. The Labour Party was defending one seat. Protectionist Senator Thomas Playford and Free Trade Senators Sir Richard Baker and Sir Josiah Symon were not up for re-election.
Free Trade candidatesLabour candidatesIndependent candidates Robert CaldwellDavid CharlestonWilliam Copley Robert Guthrie*Gregor McGregor*William Story* William GrasbyCrawford Vaughan
Tasmania Three seats were up for election. The Protectionist Party was defending one seat. The Free Trade Party was defending two seats. Protectionist Senator John Keating, Free Trade Senator John Clemons and Labour Senator David O'Keefe were not up for re-election.
Protectionist candidatesFree Trade candidatesLabour candidatesRevenue Tariff candidates Cyril CameronEdward Mulcahy* James Macfarlane*Edward MilesJames Waldron Milner MacmasterJames MahoneyCharles Metz Stafford BirdHenry Dobson*
Victoria Four seats were up for election, one of which was for the short-term vacancy caused by Free Trade Senator Sir Frederick Sargood's death which had been filled in the interim by Free Trader Robert Reid. The Protectionist Party was defending two seats. The Free Trade Party was defending one seat. The Labour Party was defending one seat, although Senator John Barrett had been denied Labour endorsement and instead ran on the Protectionist ticket. Protectionist Senators Simon Fraser and Sir William Zeal were not up for re-election.
Protectionist candidatesFree Trade candidatesLabour candidatesOther candidates John BarrettRobert Best*John DowJames Styles* Frederick DerhamSir John McIntyreEdmund SmithJohn Templeton Stephen BarkerEdward Findley*John LemmonRobert Solly Vida Goldstein (Ind Prot)William McCulloch (Ind Prot)Sir Bryan O'Loghlen (Ind Prot)William Trenwith* (Ind Lab)Henry Williams (Ind FT)George Wise (Ind Prot)
Western Australia
Three seats were up for election. The Free Trade Party was defending two seats. The Labor Party was defending one seat. Free Trade Senators Alexander Matheson and Staniforth Smith and Labour Senator George Pearce were not up for re-election.
Protectionist candidatesFree Trade candidatesLabour candidates Michael CavanaghSamuel Moore William MartinHerbert PrestonHenry Saunders John Croft*Hugh de Largie*George Henderson*
References Adam Carr's Election Archive - House of Representatives 1903