There have been 116 women elected to the House of Representatives since 1901.
Of these 116 members, 71 (61.20%) have been members of the ALP, whilst 37 (31.89%) have been from the United Australia Party or Liberal Party.
The Nationals have had 3 (2.58%) members, including one Country Liberal member from the Northern Territory and one Liberal National member from Queensland who each sat with the Nationals. There have been three independent members, including one independent Labor member, and one representative of the Nick Xenophon Team.
Of the 45 House of Representatives elections since 1901, no women were elected in 25 (55.6%). It wasn’t until the seventeenth election in 1943 that Dame Enid Lyons (UAP/Lib) became the first woman to be elected to the House. Concurrently, Dorothy Tangney (ALP) won election as the first female senator. Doris Blackburn (Independent Labour) was elected to the House in 1946.
There were no women elected to the House in the 1950s and just one each in the 1960s (Kay Brownbill) and 1970s (Joan Child). The 1977 federal election was the last time no women were elected to the House. Nine were elected in the 1980s. In the 1990s, 41 women were elected for the first time, whilst another 25 joined the House in the 2000s. In the three elections from 2010, including by-elections, another 37 women have been elected for the first time.
Reflecting the recent increase in female representation, 46 (39.65%) of the 116 female members since Federation are currently serving. Only 8 (6.89%) of the 116 have died.
- Of the 71 former female members, 36 (50.7%) were defeated at an election. Sharryn Jackson was defeated, re-elected and defeated again. Joan Child, Fran Bailey and Teresa Gambaro were each defeated, re-elected, and then retired.
- Of the 71 former female members, 33 (46.4%) ultimately chose their own time to retire. Four women left the House after losing a preselection or retiring in the face of a denial of preselection. One member (Jackie Kelly) was disqualified under Section 44 of the Constitution but was comfortably re-elected and went on to win four terms.
- Six of the 116 women have also served in the Senate, four before entering the House (Kathy Sullivan/Martin, Bronwyn Bishop, Cheryl Kernot and Belinda Neal), and two after leaving the House (Deborah O’Neill and Pauline Hanson).
- Ten of the 116 women have served in state or territory parliaments. Janice Crosio (NSW), Dr Carmen Lawrence (WA), Annette Ellis (ACT), Jill Hall (NSW), Janelle Saffin (NSW) and Linda Burney (NSW) served in the federal parliament after leaving state/territory parliament, whilst Silvia Smith (Tas), Michelle O’Byrne (Tas) and Yvette D’Ath (Qld) served first in the House. Janelle Saffin returned to the NSW parliament in 2019 as MLA for Lismore. The ALP’s Allanah MacTiernan (WA) served as a member and a minister at the state level before completing one term in the House and then returning as a member and minister at the state level. Janice Crosio and Linda Burney also served as ministers at the state level.
- The oldest currently serving female is Jane Prentice (Lib-Ryan), 65. The youngest is Clare O’Neil (ALP-Hotham), 38.
- The oldest former female member of the House is Jeannette McHugh (ALP-Phillip/Grayndler), 84. The youngest former members are Fiona Scott (Lib-Lindsay), 42, and Laura Smyth (ALP-La Trobe), 42.
- The most recent newly-elected woman is Dr Kerryn Phelps, who won the Wentworth by-election as an independent on October 20, 2018. Ged Kearney retained Batman for the ALP at a by-election on March 17, 2018.
- At by-elections on July 28, 2018, Justine Keay (Braddon), Susan Lamb (Longman) and Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo) were re-elected, following their resignations due to breaches of Section 44 of the Constitution.
The table below lists each woman by the date of her first election to the House. It also shows details of those who also served in the Senate or other parliaments. Where members have left the House, the reason for departure is shown.
| Women Members of the House of Representatives Since 1901 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Name | Party | Seat | Term Began | Term Ended |
Reason | Birth | Death | Age |
| (Dame) Enid Lyons | |||||||||
| Doris Blackburn | |||||||||
| Kay Brownbill | |||||||||
| Joan Child | 18.10.1980 |
19.02.1990 |
retired |
||||||
| Elaine Darling | |||||||||
| Ros Kelly | |||||||||
| Wendy Fatin | Brand (WA) |
01.12.1984 |
29.01.1996 |
||||||
| Jeannette McHugh | Grayndler (NSW) |
13.03.1993 |
29.01.1996 |
||||||
| Helen Mayer | |||||||||
| Carolyn Jakobsen | |||||||||
| Kathy Sullivan (Martin) | Moncrieff (Qld) |
01.12.1984 |
08.10.2001 |
||||||
| Mary Crawford | |||||||||
| Elizabeth Harvey | |||||||||
| Fran Bailey | 02.03.1996 |
19.07.2010 |
retired |
||||||
| Janice Crosio | |||||||||
| Christine Gallus | Hindmarsh (SA) |
13.03.1993 |
31.08.2004 |
||||||
| Maggie Deahm | |||||||||
| Mary Easson | |||||||||
| Marjorie Henzell | |||||||||
| Judi Moylan | |||||||||
| Silvia Smith | MLC Windermere |
1997 |
2003 |
||||||
| Trish Worth | |||||||||
| Dr Carmen Lawrence | MLA Subiaco MLA Glenalough Fremantle (WA) |
1986 1989 12.03.1994 |
1989 1994 17.10.2007 |
new seat resigned retired |
|||||
| Bronwyn Bishop | Mackellar (NSW) |
26.03.1994 |
09.05.2016 |
preselection |
|||||
| Trish Draper | |||||||||
| Annette Ellis | Canberra (ACT) |
03.10.1998 |
19.07.2010 |
||||||
| Kay Elson | |||||||||
| Teresa Gambaro | Brisbane (Qld) |
21.08.2010 |
09.05.2016 |
retired |
|||||
| Joanna Gash | |||||||||
| Elizabeth Grace | |||||||||
| Pauline Hanson | PHON |
Senate (Qld) |
02.07.2016 |
– |
– |
||||
| Susan Jeanes | |||||||||
| Ricky Johnston | |||||||||
| De-Anne Kelly | |||||||||
| Jackie Kelly | 19.10.1996 |
17.10.2007 |
retired |
||||||
| Jenny Macklin | |||||||||
| Dr Sharman Stone | |||||||||
| Danna Vale | |||||||||
| Andrea West | |||||||||
| Julie Bishop | |||||||||
| Anna Burke | |||||||||
| Jane Gerick | |||||||||
| Julia Gillard | |||||||||
| Jill Hall | Shortland (NSW) |
03.10.1998 |
09.05.2016 |
retired |
|||||
| Kelly Hoare | |||||||||
| Kay Hull | |||||||||
| Julia Irwin | |||||||||
| Cheryl Kernot | Dickson (Qld) |
03.10.1998 |
10.11.2001 |
defeated |
|||||
| Kirsten Livermore | |||||||||
| Margaret May | |||||||||
| Jann McFarlane | |||||||||
| Michelle O’Byrne | MHA Bass (Tas) |
18.03.2006 |
– |
– |
|||||
| Tanya Plibersek | |||||||||
| Nicola Roxon | |||||||||
| Ann Corcoran | |||||||||
| Leonie Short | |||||||||
| Jennie George | |||||||||
| Sharon Grierson | |||||||||
| Sharryn Jackson | 24.11.2007 |
21.08.2010 |
defeated |
||||||
| Catherine King | |||||||||
| Sussan Ley | |||||||||
| Sophie Panopoulos (Mirabella) | |||||||||
| Maria Vamvakinou | |||||||||
| Sharon Bird | |||||||||
| Justine Elliot | |||||||||
| Kate Ellis | |||||||||
| Louise Markus | Macquarie (NSW) |
21.08.2010 |
02.07.2016 |
||||||
| Julie Owens | |||||||||
| Jodie Campbell | |||||||||
| Julie Collins | |||||||||
| Yvette D’Ath | MLA Redcliffe (Qld) |
22.02.2014 |
– |
– |
|||||
| Nola Marino | |||||||||
| Maxine McKew | |||||||||
| Belinda Neal | Robertson (NSW) |
24.11.2007 |
19.07.2010 |
preselection |
|||||
| Melissa Parke | |||||||||
| Kerry Rea | |||||||||
| Amanda Rishworth | |||||||||
| Janelle Saffin | |||||||||
| Kelly O’Dwyer | |||||||||
| Karen Andrews | |||||||||
| Gai Brodtmann | |||||||||
| Natasha Griggs | |||||||||
| Deborah O’Neill | Senate (NSW) |
13.11.2013 |
– |
||||||
| Jane Prentice | |||||||||
| Michelle Rowland | |||||||||
| Laura Smyth | |||||||||
| Lisa Chesters | |||||||||
| Sharon Claydon | |||||||||
| Sarah Henderson | |||||||||
| Michelle Landry | |||||||||
| Alannah MacTiernan | MLA Armadale Perth (WA) MLC North Metro |
14.12.1996 07.09.2013 2017 |
19.07.2010 09.05.2016 – |
resigned retired – |
|||||
| Cathy McGowan | |||||||||
| Karen McNamara | |||||||||
| Clare O’Neil | |||||||||
| Melissa Price | |||||||||
| Joanne Ryan | |||||||||
| Fiona Scott | |||||||||
| Ann Sudmalis | |||||||||
| Lucy Wicks | |||||||||
| Terri Butler | |||||||||
| Anne Aly | |||||||||
| Julia Banks | |||||||||
| Linda Burney | |||||||||
| Nicolle Flint | |||||||||
| Emma Husar | |||||||||
| Justine Keay | 28.07.2018 |
– |
– |
||||||
| Madeleine King | |||||||||
| Susan Lamb | 28.07.2018 |
– |
– |
||||||
| Emma McBride | |||||||||
| Cathy O’Toole | |||||||||
| Rebekha Sharkie | 28.07.2018 |
– |
– |
||||||
| Anne Stanley | |||||||||
| Meryl Swanson | |||||||||
| Susan Templeman | |||||||||
| Ged Kearney | |||||||||
| Dr Kerryn Phelps | |||||||||
