Division of Groom
The Division of Groom is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland.
| Groom Australian House of Representatives Division | |
|---|---|
 Division of Groom in Queensland, as of the 2019 federal election. | |
| Created | 1984 |
| MP | Garth Hamilton |
| Party | Liberal National |
| Namesake | Sir Littleton Groom |
| Electors | 105,984 (2019) |
| Area | 5,586 km2 (2,156.8 sq mi) |
| Demographic | Provincial |
History
The division was created in 1984 as essentially a reconfigured version of the old Division of Darling Downs, which had existed since Federation. It is named in honour of Sir Littleton Groom, who represented Darling Downs with only one short break from 1901 to 1936 and served as Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives.
It is located in the rural areas west of Brisbane and is centred on the city of Toowoomba, Australia's second largest inland city. Other centres include Oakey and Pittsworth.
The seat has never elected a Labor member in either of its incarnations as Darling Downs or Groom. While Toowoomba itself (particularly, the northern suburbs) occasionally votes for Labor, it is nowhere near enough to overcome the conservative bent of the rural areas.
2020 Groom by-election
Members
| Image | Member | Party | Term | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Tom McVeigh (1930–) |
Nationals | 1 December 1984 – 29 February 1988 |
Previously held the Division of Darling Downs. Resigned in order to retire from politics. Son is John McVeigh | |
|
Bill Taylor (1938–) |
Liberal | 9 April 1988 – 31 August 1998 |
Retired | |
 |
Ian Macfarlane (1955–) |
Liberal | 3 October 1998 – 19 July 2010 |
Served as minister under Howard and Abbott. Retired | |
| Liberal National | 19 July 2010 – 9 May 2016 | ||||
 |
John McVeigh (1965–) |
Liberal National | 2 July 2016 – 18 September 2020 |
Previously held the Legislative Assembly of Queensland seat of Toowoomba South. Served as minister under Turnbull. Resigned in order to retire from politics. Father is Tom McVeigh | |
|
Garth Hamilton (1979–) |
Liberal National | 28 November 2020 – present |
Incumbent |
Election results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal National | Garth Hamilton | 51,534 | 59.83 | +6.49 | |
| Labor | Chris Meibusch | 23,500 | 27.28 | +8.62 | |
| Sustainable Australia | Sandra Jephcott | 6,716 | 7.80 | +7.80 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Craig Farquharson | 4,391 | 5.10 | +5.10 | |
| Total formal votes | 86,141 | 97.18 | +0.38 | ||
| Informal votes | 2,504 | 2.82 | −0.38 | ||
| Turnout | 88,645 | 81.66 | −11.38 | ||
| Two-party-preferred result | |||||
| Liberal National | Garth Hamilton | 57,875 | 67.19 | −3.29 | |
| Labor | Chris Meibusch | 28,266 | 32.81 | +3.29 | |
| Liberal National hold | Swing | −3.29 | |||
References
- "Tally Room: 2020 Groom By-election". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 25 December 2020.