| Election Name: | 1987 Northern Territory general election |
| Country: | Northern Territory |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1983 Northern Territory general election |
| Previous Year: | 1983 |
| Next Election: | 1990 Northern Territory general election |
| Next Year: | 1990 |
| Seats For Election: | All 25 seats of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly |
| Majority Seats: | 13 |
| Turnout: | 71.2 (10.4 pp) |
| Leader1: | Stephen Hatton |
| Leader Since1: | 14 May 1986 |
| Party1: | Country Liberal Party |
| Leaders Seat1: | Nightcliff |
| Popular Vote1: | 20,074 |
| Percentage1: | 39.4% |
| Swing1: | 18.8 |
| Last Election1: | 19 seats |
| Seats1: | 16 |
| Seat Change1: | 3 |
| Leader2: | Terry Smith |
| Leader Since2: | 19 August 1986 |
| Party2: | Australian Labor Party (Northern Territory Branch) |
| Leaders Seat2: | Millner |
| Popular Vote2: | 18,307 |
| Percentage2: | 36.0% |
| Swing2: | 0.4 |
| Last Election2: | 6 seats |
| Seats2: | 6 |
| Leader3: | Ian Tuxworth |
| Leader Since3: | 21 December 1986 |
| Party3: | Northern Territory Nationals |
| Leaders Seat3: | Barkly |
| Popular Vote3: | 9,058 |
| Percentage3: | 17.1% |
| Swing3: | New |
| Last Election3: | Did not exist |
| Seats3: | 1 |
| Seat Change3: | New |
| 1Blank: | TPP |
| 2Blank: | TPP swing |
| 1Data1: | 57.3% |
| 2Data1: | 3.8 |
| 1Data2: | 42.7% |
| 2Data2: | 3.8 |
| Map Size: | 400px |
| Chief Minister | |
| Before Election: | Stephen Hatton |
| Before Party: | Country Liberal Party |
| After Election: | Stephen Hatton |
| After Party: | Country Liberal Party |
A general election was held in the Northern Territory, Australia on Saturday 7 March 1987. Although the incumbent Country Liberal Party (CLP) won a majority under new leader Stephen Hatton, the party's vote was down almost 20 percentage points.
At the 1987 election, the CLP faced a challenge from the Northern Territory Nationals, a rebel conservative party led by former CLP Chief Minister Ian Tuxworth that was aligned with then-Queensland Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen, but not affiliated with the federal National Party of Australia. The NT Nationals took 17.79% of the primary vote, mostly from the CLP, but finished with only one member in the assembly. Hatton, despite a loss of three seats, retained a working majority.
Labor's vote remained virtually unchanged. As in 1983, its assembly tally was six.
Two former-CLP independents were re-elected in their seats. Noel Padgham-Purich was re-elected to Koolpinyah, while Denis Collins was re-elected to Sadadeen as an independent. Former Chief Minister Ian Tuxworth was also re-elected as a member of the NT Nationals.
Ian Tuxworth's election to the seat of Barkly was declared void after independent candidate Maggie Hickey challenged the result on the basis that the Labor candidate, Keith Hallet, held British nationality and was not an Australian citizen. Due to the close result (Tuxworth had won by only 19 votes), Justice John Nader voided the election on 30 July 1987, and a by-election was held on 5 September 1987, at which Tuxworth regained the seat.[1]
See also: Results of the Northern Territory general election, 1987.
| 16 | 1 | 2 | 6 | |
| CLP | Nat | Ind | Labor |
Sitting members are listed in bold. Successful candidates are highlighted in the relevant colour.
| Electorate | Held by | Labor candidate | CLP candidate | Nationals candidates | Independent candidates | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dorothy Fox | Peter Watton | |||||||
| Di Shanahan | Eric Poole | |||||||
| Wes Lanhupuy | John Hancock | Brian Dalliston | Bruce Foley | |||||
| Keith Hallett | Gary Smith | Ian Tuxworth | Maggie Hickey | |||||
| Mike Alsop | Roger Vale | Max Stewart | ||||||
| Nick Dondas | Giuseppe Nicolosi | |||||||
| John Waters | Marshall Perron | Stephen Marshall | Edward Osgood Strider | |||||
| John Omond | Ray Hanrahan | Jacqueline Anderson | ||||||
| Bob Wharton | Rick Setter | Harry Maschke | ||||||
| Robyn Crompton | Mick Palmer | Lionel Preston | ||||||
| Phil Maynard | ||||||||
| Peter Ivinson | Pat Loftus | David Loveridge | Noel Padgham-Purich | |||||
| David Lamb-Jenkins | Fred Finch | David Wane | ||||||
| Chris McMah | Col Firmin | Brian Thomas | Sydney Cross | |||||
| Neil Bell | J. Davis | Ron Liddle | ||||||
| Terry Smith | John Baban | Michael Foley | ||||||
| Dan Leo | Pam Steele-Wareham | Deane Crowhurst | Pat Ellis | |||||
| John Rowell | Stephen Hatton | Brian Brent | ||||||
| Tony Henry | Barry Coulter | Michael Ting | ||||||
| Russell Kearney | Tom Harris | James Maclean | ||||||
| Meredith Campbell | Lynne Peterkin | Denis Collins | ||||||
| Peter McQueen | Daryl Manzie | Lawrence Armstrong | ||||||
| Brian Ede | Jim Sinclair | Ian Drennan | Vince Forrester | |||||
| Leon White | Terry McCarthy | Ronald Wright | Lance Lawrence | |||||
| Peter McNab | Don Dale | Graeme Bevis |
| Seat | Pre-1987 | Swing | Post-1987 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Member | Margin | Margin | Member | Party | |||||||
| Barkly | Country Liberals | Ian Tuxworth | 10.3 (CLP) | N/A | 0.5 | Ian Tuxworth | NT Nationals | |||||
| Koolpinyah | Independent | Noel Padgham-Purich | 12.5 (CLP) | 31.3 | 18.8 | Noel Padgham-Purich | Independent | |||||
| Sadadeen | Independent | Denis Collins | 20.5 (CLP) | 40.2 | 19.7 | Denis Collins | Independent | |||||
The following pendulum is known as the Mackerras pendulum, invented by psephologist Malcolm Mackerras. The pendulum works by lining up all of the seats held in the Legislative Assembly according to the percentage point margin they are held by on a two-party-preferred basis. This is also known as the swing required for the seat to change hands. Given a uniform swing to the opposition or government parties, the number of seats that change hands can be predicted.
| Country Liberal seats | ||||
| Marginal | ||||
| Casuarina | Nick Dondas | CLP | 4.0 | |
| Katherine | Mike Reed | CLP | 5.9 v NAT | |
| Fairly safe | ||||
| Leanyer | Fred Finch | CLP | 6.3 | |
| Karama | Mick Palmer | CLP | 6.5 | |
| Jingili | Rick Setter | CLP | 7.4 | |
| Sanderson | Daryl Manzie | CLP | 7.6 | |
| Wanguri | Don Dale | CLP | 9.4 | |
| Safe | ||||
| Fannie Bay | Marshall Perron | CLP | 13.3 | |
| Araluen | Eric Poole | CLP | 14.2 | |
| Palmerston | Barry Coulter | CLP | 15.1 | |
| Ludmilla | Col Firmin | CLP | 16.1 v NAT | |
| Victoria River | Terry McCarthy | CLP | 16.9 | |
| Port Darwin | Tom Harris | CLP | 17.1 | |
| Nightcliff | Stephen Hatton | CLP | 18.4 | |
| Flynn | Ray Hanrahan | CLP | 19.0 | |
| Very safe | ||||
| Braitling | Roger Vale | CLP | 25.5 | |
| Labor seats | ||||
| Marginal | ||||
| Arnhem | Wes Lanhupuy | ALP | 5.1 | |
| Fairly safe | ||||
| Nhulunbuy | Dan Leo | ALP | 9.9 | |
| Safe | ||||
| Millner | Terry Smith | ALP | 15.2 | |
| Arafura | Stan Tipiloura | ALP | 17.9 | |
| Stuart | Brian Ede | ALP | 19.2 | |
| Very safe | ||||
| Macdonnell | Neil Bell | ALP | 24.9 | |
| Crossbench seats | ||||
| Barkly | Ian Tuxworth | NAT | 0.5 v IND | |
| Koolpinyah | Noel Padgham-Purich | IND | 18.8 v NAT | |
| Sadadeen | Denis Collins | IND | 19.7 v LAB | |