Since 1970, the South Australian House of Assembly — the lower house of the Parliament of South Australia — has consisted of 47 single-member electoral districts consisting of approximately the same number of enrolled voters. The district boundaries are regulated by the State Electoral Office, according to the requirements of the South Australian Constitution and are subject to mandatory redistributions by the South Australian Electoral Districts Boundaries Commission in order to respond to changing demographics.
Boundary adjustments Electoral boundaries are adjusted after each election. The number of electors in each district must be within 10% of the average at the time of the redistribution order. Other issues that may be considered include economic, social and regional communities of interest. From 1990 to 2018, it was also a requirement that each redistribution attempt to ensure that the party that obtains 50% or more of the overall vote at a general election would be able to form a government; this requirement has since been repealed.
While South Australia's total population exceeds 1.8 million, Adelaide's population exceeds 1.4 million (as at 30 June 2023) − uniquely highly centralised, over 78% of the state's population resides in the Greater Adelaide metropolitan area and has 72% of seats (34 of 47) alongside a lack of comparatively sized rural population centres, therefore the metropolitan area is crucial in deciding election outcomes. At the 2014 election for example, although the statewide two-party vote (2PP) was 47.0% Labor vs. 53.0% Liberal, the metropolitan area recorded a 2PP of 51.5% Labor v 48.5% Liberal.
Election 1970 1973 1975 1977 1979 1982 1985 1989 1993 1997 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022 2026Govt Labor Labor Labor Labor Liberal Labor Labor Labor Liberal Liberal Labor Labor Labor Labor Liberal Labor Labor# of seats 27 26 23 27 24 24 27 22 37 23 23 28 26 23 25 27 34% of seats 57.455.348.957.451.151.157.446.878.748.948.959.655.348.953.257.472.34% of vote TPP 53.354.549.253.455.050.953.248.161.051.549.156.848.447.051.9454.5955.7
List of the current 47 electoral districts
Adelaide Badcoe Black Bragg Chaffey Cheltenham Colton Croydon Davenport Dunstan Elder Elizabeth Enfield Finniss Flinders Florey Gibson Giles Hammond Hartley Heysen Hurtle Vale Kaurna Kavel King Lee Light MacKillop Mawson Morialta Morphett Mount Gambier Narungga Newland Ngadjuri Playford Port Adelaide Ramsay Reynell Schubert Stuart Taylor Torrens Unley Waite West Torrens Wright
Maps
Numbers of electorates and members
From 1857 to 1933, the number of districts varied between 12 (1912–1915) and 27 (1890–1901). Each district returned from 1-6 members.
Since 1938, the South Australian House of Assembly has had single-member electoral districts. From 1938 to 1968 there were 39 districts. Since 1970 there have been 47 electoral districts.
Parliaments Years elected Districts Members 1, 2 1857, 1860 17 36 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 1862, 1865, 1868, 1870, 1871 18 36 8, 9, 10 1875, 1878, 1881 22 46 11, 12 1884, 1887 26 52 13, 14, 15, 16 1890, 1893, 1896, 1899 27 54 17, 18, 19, 20 1902, 1905, 1906, 1910 13 42 21 1912 12 40 22, 23, 24, 25, 26,27, 28 1915, 1918, 1921, 1924, 1927,1930, 1933 19 46 29, 30, 31, 32, 33,34, 35, 36, 37, 38,39 1938, 1941, 1944, 1947, 1950,1953, 1956, 1959, 1962, 1965,1968 39 39 40, 41, 42, 43, 44,45, 46, 47, 48, 49,50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55 1970, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1979,1982, 1985, 1989, 1993, 1997,2002, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2026 47 47
Electoral districts This table gives the number of members returned by each electoral district at each election. 1857-1862 1862-1875 1875-1884 1884-1890 1890-1902 1902-1912 1912-1915 1915-1938 1938-1956 1956-1970 1970-1985 1985-1993 1993-1997 1997-2002 2002-2014 2014-2018 2018-now Districts 1718222627131219393947474747474747 Members 3636465254424046393947474747474747District Adelaide, City of 6 Adelaide 4 4 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Albert 2 2 2 2 1 1 Albert Park 1 1 Alexandra 4 4 3 1 1 1 1 Angas 1 1 Ascot Park 1 1 Ashford 1 1 57-6262-7575-8484-9090-0202-1212-1515-3838-5656-7070-8585-9393-9797-0202-1414-182018+ Badcoe 1 Barossa 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 1 Baudin 1 1 1 Black 1 Bragg 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Briggs 1 Bright 1 1 1 1 Brighton 1 The Burra and Clare 3 The Burra 2 2 Burra 2 2 1 1 Burra Burra 3 3 3 Burnside 1 1 57-6262-7575-8484-9090-0202-1212-1515-3838-5656-7070-8585-9393-9797-0202-1414-182018+ Chaffey 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Cheltenham 1 1 1 Coles 1 1 1 1 Colton 1 1 1 1 1 Croydon 1 1 1 Custance 1 1 Davenport 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Dunstan 1 1 East Adelaide 2 2 2 East Torrens 22 2 2 2 3 Edwardstown 1 Elder 1 1 1 1 1 Elizabeth 1 1 1 1 1 1 Encounter Bay 222 2 2 Enfield 1 1 1 1 Eyre 1 1 1 57-6262-7575-8484-9090-0202-1212-1515-3838-5656-7070-8585-9393-9797-0202-1414-182018+ Finniss 1 1 1 1 1 Fisher 1 1 1 1 1 1 Flinders 1 2 3 2 2 3 3 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Florey 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Frome 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Gawler 1 1 Gibson 1 Giles 1 1 1 1 1 Gilles 1 1 Gladstone 2 2 Glenelg 1 1 1 Goodwood 1 Gouger 1 1 1 Goyder 1 1 1 1 1 1 Gumeracha 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 57-6262-7575-8484-9090-0202-1212-1515-3838-5656-7070-8585-9393-9797-0202-1414-182018+ Hammond 1 1 1 1 Hanson 1 1 1 1 Hart 1 1 Hartley 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Hayward 1 Henley Beach 1 1 Heysen 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Hindmarsh 1 1 Hurtle Vale 1 Kaurna 1 1 1 1 1 Kavel 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 King 1 Lee 1 1 1 1 1 Light 2 2 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Little Para 1 1 57-6262-7575-8484-9090-0202-1212-1515-3838-5656-7070-8585-9393-9797-0202-1414-182018+ MacKillop 1 1 1 1 1 Mallee 1 Mawson 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Millicent 1 1 Mitcham 1 1 1 Mitchell 1 1 1 1 1 1 Morialta 1 1 1 Morphett 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Mount Barker 2 2 2 2 2 Mount Gambier 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 The Murray 1 Murray 3 3 3 1 1 1 Murray-Mallee 1 57-6262-7575-8484-9090-0202-1212-1515-3838-5656-7070-8585-9393-9797-0202-1414-182018+ Napier 1 1 1 1 1 1 Narungga 1 Newcastle 2 2 2 1 1 Newland 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Noarlunga 2 2 2 2 2 North Adelaide 122 2 Northern Territory 22 Norwood 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Onkaparinga 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 Peake 1 1 1 1 Pirie 1 Playford 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Port Adelaide 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 2 1 1 1 1 1 Port Pirie 2 1 1 Price 1 1 1 Prospect 1 57-6262-7575-8484-9090-0202-1212-1515-3838-5656-7070-8585-9393-9797-0202-1414-182018+ Ramsay 1 1 1 1 1 1 Reynell 1 1 1 1 1 Ridley 1 1 1 Rocky River 1 1 1 Ross Smith 1 1 1 1 Salisbury 1 Semaphore 1 1 1 1 Schubert 1 1 1 1 Spence 1 1 1 1 Stanley 2 2 2 3 3 2 1 Stirling 1 1 Stuart 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Sturt, The 2 2 Sturt 2 2 2 3 Taylor 1 1 1 1 1 Tea Tree Gully 1 Thebarton 1 Todd 1 1 Torrens 5 5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 57-6262-7575-8484-9090-0202-1212-1515-3838-5656-7070-8585-9393-9797-0202-1414-182018+ Unley 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Victoria 1 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 Victoria and Albert 3 3 Waite 1 1 1 1 1 Wallaroo 3 2 2 3 3 2 1 1 Walsh 1 West Adelaide 2222 West Torrens 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 Whyalla 1 1 1 Wooroora 2 2 2 3 3 3 Wright 1 1 1 1 1 Yatala 2 2 2 2 2 Yorke Peninsula 2 1 1 Young 1 1857-1862 1862-1875 1875-1884 1884-1890 1890-1902 1902-1912 1912-1915 1915-1938 1938-1956 1956-1970 1970-1985 1985-1993 1993-1997 1997-2002 2002-2014 2014-2018 2018-now
Abolished electoral districts These electoral districts no longer exist:
Albert Albert Park Alexandra Angas Ashford Ascot Park Barossa Baudin Briggs Bright Brighton Burnside Burra Burra Burra City of Adelaide Coles Custance East Adelaide East Torrens Edwardstown Encounter Bay Eyre Fisher Frome Gawler Gilles Gladstone Glenelg Goodwood Gordon Gouger Goyder Gumeracha Hanson Hart Hayward Henley Beach Hindmarsh Little Para Mallee Millicent Mitcham Mitchell Mount Barker Murray Murray-Mallee Napier Newcastle Noarlunga North Adelaide Northern Territory Norwood Onkaparinga Peake Pirie Port Pirie Price Prospect Ridley Rocky River Ross Smith Salisbury Semaphore Spence Stanley Stirling Sturt Tea Tree Gully The Burra The Burra and Clare The Murray Thebarton Todd Victoria Victoria and Albert Wallaroo Walsh West Adelaide Whyalla Wooroora Yatala Yorke Peninsula Young
See also Members of the South Australian House of Assembly Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives
Notes Metropolitan 2PP correctly calculated by adding raw metro 2PP vote numbers from the 34 metro seats, both Labor and Liberal, then dividing Labor's raw metro 2PP vote from the total, which revealed a Labor metropolitan 2PP of 51.54%.
References
External links State Electoral Office Maps of South Australian Electoral Districts Statistical Record of the Legislature 1836–2007, Parliament of SA, www.parliament.sa.gov.au Former Members of the Parliament of South Australia