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THE POLL BLUDGER CURTIN
Curtin was created with the expansion of parliament in 1949, initially covering inner suburbs west of the city before extending to the coast in 1955. Only in 1980 did it assume its current southern boundary at the Swan River, taking over Cottesloe and North Fremantle from Fremantle. Curtin was a blue-ribbon Liberal seat from its creation, being held first by prime ministerial contender and future Governor-General Paul Hasluck, and then by McMahon and Fraser government minister Victor Garland. The latter's resignation in early 1981 led to a preselection brawl in which then-Premier Sir Charles Court helped marshal forces behind Allan Rocher to thwart Fred Chaney's ambition to move from the Senate to the House (eventually realised when he became member for Pearce in 1990). Rocher was defeated for preselection ahead of the 1996 election by Ken Court, son of the aforementioned Charles and brother of the then-Premier, Richard. This greatly displeased newly reinstalled Liberal leader John Howard, who did little to assist Ken Court's election campaign or to dispel the conception that he owed his preselection to unpopular party powerbroker Noel Crichton-Browne. Rocher was thus able to easily retain his seat as an independent on Labor preferences (a similar story was playing out in the northern suburbs seat of Moore). The seat returned to the Liberal fold in 1998, when Rocher was defeated by Julie Bishop. Bishop's early career progress was reckoned to have been constrained by her ties to Peter Costello, and in late 2001 she signed on to an abortive scheme to move into state politics to assume the leadership from Richard Court, who had just led his government to an election defeat. Serious promotion eventually came with her elevation to Ageing Minister in 2003, and she moved further up the ladder to Education, Science and Training Minister in January 2006. Labor has recently stirred the pot by placing an ad in The West Australian which spoke of “speculation” she might yet be drafted into state politics, where the Liberals continue to flounder. | |