List of prime ministers of Australia explained

The prime minister of Australia is the leader of the Australian Government and the Cabinet of Australia, with the support of the majority of the House of Representatives.[1] [2] Thirty-one people (thirty men and one woman) have served in the position since the office was created in 1901.[3] The role of prime minister is not mentioned in the Constitution of Australia,[4] but the prime minister is still appointed by the governor-general who under Section 64 of the constitution has the executive power to appoint ministers of state. The governor-general is appointed by the monarch of Australia based on the advice of the incumbent prime minister. Governors-general do not have fixed terms, but usually serve for five years.[5]

Federal elections must be held every three years, although prime ministers may call elections early.[6] Prime ministers do not have fixed terms, and generally serve the full length of their term unless they lose the majority of the House or are replaced as the leader of their party. Three former prime ministers lost a majority in the House (Alfred Deakin on two occasions, George Reid and Andrew Fisher), six resigned following leadership spills (John Gorton, Bob Hawke, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull) and three died in office (Joseph Lyons, John Curtin and Harold Holt, who disappeared and is presumed to have died).[7] Two prime ministers also lost their role in a double dissolution election, a snap election where the entire Senate stands for re-election rather than the typical half to resolve deadlocks between the two houses. These were Joseph Cook in 1914 and Malcolm Fraser in 1983. One prime minister, Gough Whitlam, was controversially dismissed by the governor-general during a constitutional crisis.[8]

Since the office was established in 1901, thirty men and one woman have been prime minister. Robert Menzies and Kevin Rudd served two non-consecutive terms in office while Alfred Deakin and Andrew Fisher served three non-consecutive terms.[9]

The prime ministership of Frank Forde, who was prime minister for seven days in 1945, was the shortest in Australian history.[10] Menzies served the longest, with eighteen years over two non-consecutive periods.[11]

The 31st and current prime minister is Anthony Albanese, who assumed office on 23 May 2022.[9] There are currently seven living former prime ministers. The most recent former prime minister to die was Hawke, on 16 May 2019.[12]

List of prime ministers

The parties shown are those to which the prime ministers belonged at the time they held office, and the electoral divisions shown are those they represented while in office. Several prime ministers belonged to parties other than those given and represented other electorates before and after their time in office.

Political parties

Status

! scope=col rowspan=2 class=unsortable
Portraitscope=col rowspan=2 Name
scope=col rowspan=2 class=unsortable Election
scope=colgroup colspan=3 Term of officescope=col rowspan=2 Political
party
scope=col rowspan=2 class=unsortable MinistryMonarchGovernor-General
scope=col class=unsortable Took officescope=col class=unsortable Left officescope=col Time in office
1Edmund Barton

1901 (1st)1 January
1901
24 September
1903
ProtectionistBartonVictoriaLord Hopetoun[13]
Edward VII
Lord Tennyson
2Alfred Deakin

— (1st)24 September
1903
27 April
1904
Protectionist1st Deakin
1903 (2nd)
Lord Northcote
3scope=row style="text-align:center" Chris Watson

— (2nd)27 April
1904
18 August
1904
LaborWatson
4scope=row style="text-align:center" George Reid

— (2nd)18 August
1904
5 July
1905
Free TradeReid[14]
(2)Alfred Deakin

— (2nd)5 July
1905
13 November
1908
Protectionist2nd Deakin
1906 (3rd)
Lord Dudley
5scope=row style="text-align:center" Andrew Fisher

— (3rd)13 November
1908
2 June
1909
Labor1st Fisher[15]
(2)scope=row style="text-align:center" Alfred Deakin

— (3rd)2 June
1909
29 April
1910
Liberal3rd Deakin
(5)Andrew Fisher

1910 (4th)29 April
1910
24 June
1913
Labor2nd Fisher
George V
Lord Denman
6Joseph Cook
(1860–1947)
1913 (5th)24 June
1913
17 September
1914
LiberalCook[16]
Ronald Munro Ferguson
(5)scope=row style="text-align:center" Andrew Fisher

1914 (6th)17 September
1914
27 October
1915
Labor3rd Fisher
Billy Hughes



— (6th)27 October
1915
14 November
1916
Labor1st Hughes[17]
7– (6th)14 November
1916
17 February
1917
National Labor2nd Hughes
– (6th)17 February
1917
9 February
1923
Nationalist3rd Hughes
1917 (7th)4th Hughes
1919 (8th)5th Hughes
Lord Forster
8Stanley Bruce

1922 (9th)9 February
1923
22 October
1929
Nationalist
(Coalition)
1st Bruce
Lord Stonehaven
1925 (10th)2nd Bruce
1928 (11th)3rd Bruce
9James Scullin

1929 (12th)22 October
1929
6 January
1932
LaborScullin
Sir Isaac Isaacs
10Joseph Lyons
(1879–1939)
1931 (13th)6 January
1932
7 April
1939
United Australia1st Lyons
1934 (14th)2nd Lyons
— (14th)United Australia
(Coalition)
3rd Lyons
Edward VIII
Lord Gowrie
George VI
1937 (15th)4th Lyons
11scope=row style="text-align:center" Earle Page

— (15th)7 April
1939
26 April
1939
Country
(Coalition)
Page
(Caretaker)
12scope=rowgroup rowspan=3 style="text-align:center" Robert Menzies

— (15th)26 April
1939
29 August
1941
United Australia1st Menzies
United Australia
(Coalition)
2nd Menzies
1940 (16th)3rd Menzies
13scope=row style="text-align:center" Arthur Fadden

— (16th)29 August
1941
7 October
1941
Country
(Coalition)
Fadden
14John Curtin

7 October
1941
5 July
1945
Labor1st Curtin
1943 (17th)2nd Curtin
Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester
15scope=row style="text-align:center" Frank Forde

— (17th)5 July
1945
13 July
1945
LaborForde
(Caretaker)
16Ben Chifley

— (17th)13 July
1945
19 December
1949
Labor1st Chifley
1946 (18th)2nd Chifley
Sir William McKell
(12)Robert Menzies

1949 (19th)19 December
1949
26 January
1966
Liberal
(Coalition)
4th Menzies
1951 (20th)5th Menzies
Elizabeth II
Sir William Slim
1954 (21st)6th Menzies
1955 (22nd)7th Menzies
1958 (23rd)8th Menzies
Lord Dunrossil
Lord De L'Isle
1961 (24th)9th Menzies
1963 (25th)10th Menzies
Lord Casey
17scope=rowgroup rowspan=2 style="text-align:center" Harold Holt

— (25th)26 January
1966
17 December
1967
Liberal
(Coalition)
1st Holt
1966 (26th)2nd Holt
18scope=row style="text-align:center" John McEwen

— (26th)19 December
1967
10 January
1968
Country
(Coalition)
McEwen
(Caretaker)
19John Gorton

— (26th)10 January
1968
10 March
1971
Liberal
(Coalition)
1st Gorton[18]
Sir Paul Hasluck
1969 (27th)2nd Gorton
20scope=row style="text-align:center" William McMahon

— (27th)10 March
1971
5 December
1972
Liberal
(Coalition)
McMahon
21Gough Whitlam

1972 (28th)5 December
1972
11 November
1975
Labor1st Whitlam[19]
— (28th)2nd Whitlam
1974 (29th)3rd Whitlam
Sir John Kerr
22Malcolm Fraser

— (29th)11 November
1975
11 March
1983
Liberal
(Coalition)
1st Fraser[20]
1975 (30th)2nd Fraser
Sir Zelman Cowen
1977 (31st)3rd Fraser
1980 (32nd)4th Fraser
Sir Ninian Stephen
23Bob Hawke

1983 (33rd)11 March
1983
20 December
1991
Labor1st Hawke[21]
1984 (34th)2nd Hawke
1987 (35th)3rd Hawke
Bill Hayden
1990 (36th)4th Hawke
24Paul Keating

— (36th)20 December
1991
11 March
1996
Labor1st Keating[22]
1993 (37th)2nd Keating
Sir William Deane
25John Howard

1996 (38th)11 March
1996
3 December
2007
Liberal
(Coalition)
1st Howard[23]
1998 (39th)2nd Howard
Peter Hollingworth
2001 (40th)3rd Howard
Michael Jeffery
2004 (41st)4th Howard
26Kevin Rudd

2007 (42nd)3 December
2007
24 June
2010
Labor1st Rudd[24]
Dame Quentin Bryce
27scope=rowgroup rowspan=2 style="text-align:center" Julia Gillard

— (42nd)24 June
2010
27 June
2013
Labor1st Gillard[25]
2010 (43rd)2nd Gillard
(26)scope=row style="text-align:center" Kevin Rudd

— (43rd)27 June
2013
18 September
2013
Labor2nd Rudd
28Tony Abbott

2013 (44th)18 September
2013
15 September
2015
Liberal
(Coalition)
Abbott[26]
Sir Peter Cosgrove
29scope=rowgroup rowspan=2 style="text-align:center" Malcolm Turnbull

— (44th)15 September
2015
24 August
2018
Liberal
(Coalition)
1st Turnbull[27]
2016 (45th)2nd Turnbull
30Scott Morrison

— (45th)24 August
2018
23 May
2022
Liberal
(Coalition)
1st Morrison[28]
2019 (46th)2nd Morrison
David Hurley
31Anthony Albanese

2022 (47th)23 May
2022
IncumbentLaborAlbanese[29]
Charles III
Samantha Mostyn

Career-based timeline

This timeline shows most of the early life, the political career and death of each prime minister from 1901. The first prime minister was Edmund Barton in the early 20th century.[30]

Key

Notable moments

Timeline

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Ministry . 2022-08-31 . . en-AU.
  2. Web site: Infosheet 20 - The Australian system of government . 2022-09-01 . Parliament of Australia . en-AU.
  3. Web site: Prime Minister . Parliamentary Education Office . 2016-04-15 .
  4. Web site: Infosheet 20 - The Australian system of government . 2022-08-31 . Parliament of Australia . en-AU.
  5. Web site: Governor-General - Parliamentary Education Office . 2022-09-02 . Parliamentary Education Office . en.
  6. Web site: Elections and voting in Australia . 1 August 2022 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  7. Web site: Australia's PMs and how they left office . 2022-08-31 . SBS News . en.
  8. Web site: Infosheet 18 - Double dissolution . 2022-09-01 . Parliament of Australia . en-AU.
  9. Web site: Australia's Prime Ministers . 1 August 2022 . National Archives of Australia.
  10. News: 2018-12-16 . Australia's five shortest prime ministerships (and how they ended) . en-AU . ABC News . 2022-08-31.
  11. Web site: Robert Menzies MOAD . 2022-08-31 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  12. Web site: 2019-05-16 . Bob Hawke, former Australian prime minister, dies aged 89 . 2022-09-01 . . en.
  13. Rutledge . Martha . Sir Edmund (Toby) Barton (1849–1920) . barton-sir-edmund-toby-71 . 1979 . 7 . 2008-10-21.
  14. McMinn . W. G. . Sir George Houstoun Reid (1845–1918) . reid-sir-george-houstoun-8173 . 1988 . 11 . 2008-10-21 .
  15. Murphy . D. J. . Andrew Fisher (1862–1928) . fisher-andrew-378 . 1981 . 8 . 2008-10-21.
  16. Crowley . F. K. . Sir Joseph Cook (1860–1947) . cook-sir-joseph-5763 . 1981 . 8 . 2008-10-21 .
  17. Fitzhardinge . L. F. . Laurie Fitzhardinge . William Morris (Billy) Hughes (1862–1952) . hughes-william-morris-billy-6761 . 1983 . 9 . 2008-10-21.
  18. Web site: John Gorton MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  19. Web site: Gough Whitlam MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  20. Web site: Malcolm Fraser MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  21. Web site: Bob Hawke MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  22. Web site: Paul Keating MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  23. Web site: John Howard MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  24. Web site: Kevin Rudd MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  25. Web site: Julia Gillard MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  26. Web site: Tony Abbott MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  27. Web site: Malcolm Turnbull MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  28. Web site: Scott Morrison MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  29. Web site: Anthony Albanese MOAD . 2022-09-01 . Museum of Australian Democracy.
  30. Martha . Rutledge . Sir Edmund (Toby) Barton (1849–1920) . barton-sir-edmund-toby-71 . 1979 . 7 . 2008-10-21.