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Bourke — Australian Federal Election Results

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

Bourke was won by Doris Blackburn (Independent) at the 1946 federal election, with a margin of 1,489 votes over William Bryson after preferences. This page covers every federal election in Bourke from 1901 to 1946.

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), 1901–1946

Election Winner Party Final Votes Final Share Runner-up Margin
1901 James Hume Cook Prot 3,021 56.3% Frederick Hickford (FT) 678 (12.6 pts)
1903 James Hume Cook Prot 8,657 52.2% Martin Hannah (Labor) 724 (4.4 pts)
1906 James Hume Cook Prot 10,745 57.3% Randolph Bedford (Labor) 2,729 (14.5 pts)
1910 Frank Anstey Labor 17,918 58.6% James Hume Cook (Liberal) 5,258 (17.2 pts)
1913 Frank Anstey Labor 19,225 60.0% Alexander Robb (Liberal) 6,419 (20.0 pts)
1914 Frank Anstey Labor 22,075 65.9% Richard Jennings (Liberal) 10,668 (31.9 pts)
1917 Frank Anstey Labor 22,814 54.5% Arthur May (National) 3,781 (9.0 pts)
1919 Frank Anstey Labor 21,359 53.2% Reginald Tracey (National) 2,545 (6.3 pts)
1922 Frank Anstey Labor 17,068 70.1% John March (National) 9,778 (40.1 pts)
1925 Frank Anstey Labor 32,325 62.5% Edward Price (National) 12,926 (25.0 pts)
1928 Frank Anstey Labor 36,835 68.7% Leonard Smith (National) 20,038 (37.4 pts)
1929 Frank Anstey Labor 43,714 77.4% Lionel Hahn (National) 30,951 (54.8 pts)
1931 Frank Anstey Labor 28,897 51.1% John Ivey (United Australia Party) 1,273 (2.3 pts)
1934 Maurice Blackburn Labor 35,728 63.9% Henry Stubbs (United Australia Party) 15,552 (27.8 pts)
1937 Maurice Blackburn Labor 38,793 68.1% Richard Griffiths (United Australia Party) 20,631 (36.2 pts)
1940 Maurice Blackburn Labor 39,736 66.2% Charles Lucas (United Australia Party) 19,458 (32.4 pts)
1943 William Bryson Labor 35,162 53.6% Maurice Blackburn (Independent) 4,700 (7.2 pts)
1946 Doris Blackburn Independent 34,478 51.1% William Bryson (Labor) 1,489 (2.2 pts)

First-Preference Result by Election

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

1901

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
James Hume CookProt3,02134.6%
Frederick HickfordFT2,34326.8%
Martin HannahLabor1,55917.8%
James RoseIndependent1,13813.0%
James MiramsIndependent6767.7%

1903

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
James Hume CookProt8,65752.2%
Martin HannahLabor7,93347.8%

1906

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
James Hume CookProt10,74552.2%
Randolph BedfordLabor8,01638.9%
Joseph MoldenAS1,8358.9%

1910

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor17,91858.6%
James Hume CookLiberal12,66041.4%

1913

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor19,22560.0%
Alexander RobbLiberal12,80640.0%

1914

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor22,07565.9%
Richard JenningsLiberal11,40734.1%

1917

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor22,81454.5%
Arthur MayNational19,03345.5%

1919

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor21,35953.2%
Reginald TraceyNational18,81446.8%

1922

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor17,06870.1%
John MarchNational7,29029.9%

1925

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor32,32562.5%
Edward PriceNational19,39937.5%

1928

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor36,83568.7%
Leonard SmithNational16,79731.3%

1929

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor43,71477.4%
Lionel HahnNational12,76322.6%

1931

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Frank AnsteyLabor26,94847.7%
John IveyUnited Australia Party25,57245.2%
Walter NormanIndependent2,3574.2%
James AdieCommunist Party of Australia1,6442.9%

1934

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Maurice BlackburnLabor35,72860.1%
Henry StubbsUnited Australia Party20,17634.0%
Robert MccraeCommunist Party of Australia3,5095.9%

1937

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Maurice BlackburnLabor38,79368.1%
Richard GriffithsUnited Australia Party18,16231.9%

1940

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Maurice BlackburnLabor39,73666.2%
Charles LucasUnited Australia Party20,27833.8%

1943

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
Maurice BlackburnIndependent26,49440.4%
William BrysonLabor24,72237.7%
David SmithUnited Australia Party12,00418.3%
John MarchIndependent2,4043.7%

1946

CandidatePartyFirst-Pref. VotesShare
William BrysonLabor30,62045.4%
Doris BlackburnIndependent18,62527.6%
Russell StokesLiberal16,88925.0%
Henry BrandIndependent1,3332.0%

Margin Over Time

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

1901: Prot margin 12.6 pts 1903: Prot margin 4.4 pts 1906: Prot margin 14.5 pts 1910: Labor margin 17.2 pts 1913: Labor margin 20.0 pts 1914: Labor margin 31.9 pts 1917: Labor margin 9.0 pts 1919: Labor margin 6.3 pts 1922: Labor margin 40.1 pts 1925: Labor margin 25.0 pts 1928: Labor margin 37.4 pts 1929: Labor margin 54.8 pts 1931: Labor margin 2.3 pts 1934: Labor margin 27.8 pts 1937: Labor margin 36.2 pts 1940: Labor margin 32.4 pts 1943: Labor margin 7.2 pts 1946: Independent margin 2.2 pts 1901 1903 1906 1910 1913 1914 1917 1919 1922 1925 1928 1929 1931 1934 1937 1940 1943 1946

Trend

Bourke has been contested at 18 federal elections on record since 1901. Winning parties over that span: Prot, Labor, Independent.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won Bourke in the 1946 federal election?

Doris Blackburn (Independent) won Bourke in 1946 after preferences, with 34,478 votes (51.1%) to William Bryson's 32,989.

Which parties have won Bourke since 1901?

Since 1901, Bourke has been won by: Independent, Labor, Prot.

What was the closest result in Bourke?

The closest result on record for Bourke was 1946, when Doris Blackburn (Independent) beat William Bryson by 1,489 votes (2.2 percentage points) after preferences.

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