EveryElectionResult.com

Election results, country by country.

Bonython — Australian Federal Election Results

Compiled by EveryElectionResult.com's data team · Last updated 2026-08-30

Bonython was won by Martyn Evans (Labor) at the 2001 federal election, with a margin of 15,764 votes over Brenton Chomel after preferences. This page covers every federal election in Bonython from 1955 to 2001.

Australia uses instant-runoff (preferential) voting: voters rank candidates in order of preference, and if no one has a majority of first-preference votes, the lowest-placed candidate is eliminated and their votes redistributed to voters' next preference, repeating until one candidate has a majority. The "Winner" and "Margin" below reflect the final result after preferences (equivalent to the AEC's own two-candidate-preferred figure) — not simply whoever led on first preferences, which can occasionally be a different candidate.

Full Election History (After Preferences), 1955–2001

Election Winner Party Final Votes Final Share Runner-up Margin
1955 Norman Makin Labor 24,350 69.4% John Mathwin (Liberal) 13,627 (38.9 pts)
1958 Norman Makin Labor 27,598 68.3% Thomas Foale (Liberal) 14,817 (36.7 pts)
1961 Norman Makin Labor 35,245 72.2% Margaret Mclachlan (Liberal) 21,683 (44.4 pts)
1963 Martin Nicholls Labor 45,537 76.4% Edward Timlin (Democratic Labor Party) 31,453 (52.8 pts)
1966 Martin Nicholls Labor 40,790 53.6% John Kershaw (Liberal) 5,498 (7.2 pts)
1969 Martin Nicholls Labor 31,296 70.7% Rudolph Masopust (Liberal) 18,334 (41.4 pts)
1972 Martin Nicholls Labor 37,752 66.8% Rudolph Masopust (Liberal) 18,975 (33.6 pts)
1974 Martin Nicholls Labor 44,723 74.5% Rudolph Masopust (Liberal) 29,413 (49.0 pts)
1975 Martin Nicholls Labor 41,363 57.5% Alan Irving (Liberal) 10,795 (15.0 pts)
1977 Neal Blewett Labor 33,772 62.1% Brian Marsden (Liberal) 13,177 (24.2 pts)
1980 Neal Blewett Labor 40,825 62.5% Mark Mau (Liberal) 16,318 (25.0 pts)
1983 Neal Blewett Labor 48,097 66.4% Neville Joyce (Liberal) 23,706 (32.7 pts)
1984 Neal Blewett Labor 38,578 68.9% Graham Sara (Liberal) 21,160 (37.8 pts)
1987 Neal Blewett Labor 42,338 68.1% Bernhard Buechner (Liberal) 22,476 (36.1 pts)
1990 Neal Blewett Labor 45,837 65.9% Natalie Richardson (Liberal) 22,115 (31.8 pts)
1993 Neal Blewett Labor 45,174 64.7% Ian Brookfield (Liberal) 20,576 (29.5 pts)
1996 Martyn Evans Labor 41,675 59.5% Chris Bodinar (Liberal) 13,261 (18.9 pts)
1998 Martyn Evans Labor 45,935 64.5% Phil Newton (Liberal) 20,684 (29.1 pts)
2001 Martyn Evans Labor 45,688 60.4% Brenton Chomel (Liberal) 15,764 (20.8 pts)

First-Preference Result by Election

Every candidate's first-preference votes, before any preference redistribution.

1955

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Norman MakinLabor24,35069.4%
John MathwinLiberal10,72330.6%

1958

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Norman MakinLabor27,59861.3%
Thomas FoaleLiberal12,78128.4%
Joseph BuchananCommunist Party of Australia2,4705.5%
Edward TimlinDemocratic Labor Party2,2064.9%

1961

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Norman MakinLabor35,24563.2%
Margaret MclachlanLiberal13,56224.3%
Edward TimlinDemocratic Labor Party3,3316.0%
Thomas EllisIndependent2,9385.3%
Alan MillerCommunist Party of Australia6951.2%

1963

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martin NichollsLabor45,53770.9%
Edward TimlinDemocratic Labor Party14,08421.9%
Alan MillerCommunist Party of Australia4,6387.2%

1966

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martin NichollsLabor40,13349.5%
John KershawLiberal33,49341.3%
Luke HoranIndependent4,5495.6%
Edward TimlinDemocratic Labor Party2,8563.5%

1969

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martin NichollsLabor31,29663.8%
Rudolph MasopustLiberal12,96226.4%
Frank LawrenceIndependent3,7577.7%
Peter MeredithDemocratic Labor Party1,0042.0%

1972

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martin NichollsLabor37,75261.7%
Rudolph MasopustLiberal18,77730.7%
Frank LawrenceIndependent2,8944.7%
Peter MeredithDemocratic Labor Party1,7472.9%

1974

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martin NichollsLabor44,72360.4%
Rudolph MasopustLiberal15,31020.7%
Jan StaskaLM6,1318.3%
Derek BallAP3,9695.4%
Alan IrvingCountry Party3,9005.3%

1975

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martin NichollsLabor41,36350.7%
Alan IrvingLiberal30,56837.4%
John LonghurstLM5,6056.9%
Robert DurbridgeCommunist Party of Australia4,0995.0%

1977

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Neal BlewettLabor33,77250.5%
Brian MarsdenLiberal20,59530.8%
John LonghurstAustralian Democrats12,45718.6%

1980

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Neal BlewettLabor40,82554.4%
Mark MauLiberal24,50732.7%
John LonghurstAustralian Democrats8,28811.1%
John VillainIndependent7161.0%
Donald KeitelIndependent6560.9%

1983

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Neal BlewettLabor48,09760.5%
Neville JoyceLiberal24,39130.7%
John LonghurstAustralian Democrats7,0068.8%

1984

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Neal BlewettLabor35,81764.0%
Graham SaraLiberal14,90226.6%
John LonghurstAustralian Democrats5,2799.4%

1987

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Neal BlewettLabor38,15061.3%
Bernhard BuechnerLiberal15,11524.3%
Colin MaasAustralian Democrats5,8879.5%
Cathryn LinedaleNational2,2333.6%
John LonghurstIndependent8251.3%

1990

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Neal BlewettLabor36,32652.1%
Natalie RichardsonLiberal18,21626.2%
Colin MaasAustralian Democrats12,78218.3%
Bruce HannafordCommunist Party2,3343.4%

1993

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Neal BlewettLabor38,82055.6%
Ian BrookfieldLiberal20,03228.7%
Colin MaasAustralian Democrats6,5969.4%
Tony RoccaIndependent1,9942.9%
Dennis HoodCommunist Party1,0991.6%
Eamon McaleerIndependent6671.0%
Bruce HannafordIndependent6150.9%

1996

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martyn EvansLabor34,92649.6%
Chris BodinarLiberal21,82431.0%
Chris KennedyAustralian Democrats10,18514.5%
Maya O'learyGreens2,1413.0%
Michael BranderIndependent1,3571.9%

1998

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martyn EvansLabor35,96150.5%
Phil NewtonLiberal17,25324.2%
Ted ShawOne Nation10,54214.8%
Robert FisherAustralian Democrats6,5399.2%
David CarterIndependent8911.3%

2001

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Martyn EvansLabor35,81347.4%
Brenton ChomelLiberal21,82228.9%
Mark DennisAustralian Democrats7,98410.6%
John MahoneyOne Nation4,8256.4%
Rita HuntIndependent3,0664.1%
Lisa BlakeGreens2,1022.8%

Margin Over Time

Final (after-preferences) winning margin, percentage points, coloured by the winning party.

1955: Labor margin 38.9 pts 1958: Labor margin 36.7 pts 1961: Labor margin 44.4 pts 1963: Labor margin 52.8 pts 1966: Labor margin 7.2 pts 1969: Labor margin 41.4 pts 1972: Labor margin 33.6 pts 1974: Labor margin 49.0 pts 1975: Labor margin 15.0 pts 1977: Labor margin 24.2 pts 1980: Labor margin 25.0 pts 1983: Labor margin 32.7 pts 1984: Labor margin 37.8 pts 1987: Labor margin 36.1 pts 1990: Labor margin 31.8 pts 1993: Labor margin 29.5 pts 1996: Labor margin 18.9 pts 1998: Labor margin 29.1 pts 2001: Labor margin 20.8 pts 1955 1958 1961 1963 1966 1969 1972 1974 1975 1977 1980 1983 1984 1987 1990 1993 1996 1998 2001

Trend

Bonython has been contested at 19 federal elections on record since 1955. Winning party over that span: Labor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won Bonython in the 2001 federal election?

Martyn Evans (Labor) won Bonython in 2001 after preferences, with 45,688 votes (60.4%) to Brenton Chomel's 29,924.

Which parties have won Bonython since 1955?

Since 1955, Bonython has been won by: Labor.

What was the closest result in Bonython?

The closest result on record for Bonython was 1966, when Martin Nicholls (Labor) beat John Kershaw by 5,498 votes (7.2 percentage points) after preferences.

Related Pages