House of Representatives Members – Tenth Parliament 1925-1928

This is the full list of members who served in the tenth House of Representatives from 1925 until 1928.

In a 75-member chamber, the Nationalist Party government of Prime Minister Stanley Melbourne Bruce increased its majority at the November 14, 1925 election, winning 37 (+11) seats to the ALP’s 23 (-6). The Country Party won 13 (-1) seats and there were 2 independents.

The five anti-Hughes Liberal Party members from South Australia and Victoria returned to the Nationalists after Bruce assumed the prime ministership in 1923. Two other independents also returned to the Nationalists.

The Nationalists polled 42.46% of the primary vote, an increase of 7.23%. The ALP polled 45.04% (+2.74%), whilst the Country Party secured 10.74% (-1.82%). On a two-party-preferred basis, the Nationalists polled 53.80% to the ALP’s 46.20%. Even though the ALP improved its primary vote, it lost seats and was defeated for the fourth consecutive time since the conscription split of 1916.

The 1925 election was the first conducted with compulsory voting.

Thomas Ley (Nat) was elected to Barton (NSW) at the 1925 election. He was widely suspected of murdering his predecessor, Frederick McDonald, who claimed Ley tried to bribe him to withdraw from the ballot. Ley was suspected in the disappearance of other political rivals. Ley lost his seat in 1928 and was later convicted of murder in England. He was declared insane and died in Broadmoor Asylum in 1947.

There were five by-elections in the Tenth Parliament.

• 1926: Eden-Monaro (NSW) – Sir Austin Chapman (Nat) died; replaced by John Perkins (Nat).
• 1927: Dalley (NSW) – William Mahony (ALP) resigned; replaced by Ted Theodore (ALP).
• 1927: Warringah (NSW) – Sir Granville Ryrie (Nat) resigned to become High Commissioner to London; replaced by Archdale Parkhill (Nat).
• 1928: Martin (NSW) – Herbert Prattan (Nat) died; replaced by his son Graham Pratten (Nat).
• 1928: Wide Bay (Qld) – Edward Corser (Nat) replaced by his son Bernard Corser (Country Party); elected unopposed.

The first table shows the state-by-state breakdown of the House following the 1925 election.

The second table lists the 81 members who served in the 10th House of Representatives, 76 elected in 1925 and 5 who entered via by-elections. *The Northern Territory member had voting rights only for matters affecting the territory and is therefore excluded from the calculations of party strength in the House.