Preston – Victoria 2014

ALP 20.2%

Incumbent MP
Robin Scott, since 2006.

Geography
Northern Melbourne. Preston covers northern parts of Darebin council, covering most of the suburbs of Preston and Reservoir. The electorate has very clear boundaries being bound on the south by Bell Street, on the north by Mahoney’s Road, on the east by Darebin Creek, and on the west by Merri Creek.

Map of Preston's 2010 and 2014 boundaries. 2010 boundaries marked as red lines, 2014 boundaries marked as white area. Click to enlarge.
Map of Preston’s 2010 and 2014 boundaries. 2010 boundaries marked as red lines, 2014 boundaries marked as white area. Click to enlarge.

Redistribution
Changes were made to Preston’s northern and southern boundaries. In the south, Preston’s border with Northcote was realigned with Bell Street, which saw different parts of the suburb of Preston transferred into and out of the electorate. In the north, Preston’s boundary expanded to take in more of Reservoir from Thomastown. These changes slightly cut Labor’s margin from 20.4% to 20.2%.

History
Preston was created for the 1945 election, and has always been held by the ALP.

It was first won in 1945 by William Ruthven, Mayor of Collingwood, and a recipient of the Victoria Cross in the First World War. He held the seat for the ALP until 1955, when he moved to the new seat of Reservoir, which he held until his retirement in 1961.

Charlie Ring held the seat for the ALP from 1955 to 1970, followed by former Mayor of Preston, Carl Kirkwood, who held the seat from 1970 to 1988.

In 1988, the ALP’s Michael Leighton won the seat, holding it right through to 2006. He served as a shadow minister when Labor was out of government in the 1990s, but never reached the frontbench after Steve Bracks became Premier.

In 2006, Leighton retired and was succeeded by Robin Scott. Scott was re-elected in 2010.

Candidates

Assessment
Preston is a very safe Labor seat.

2010 election result

Candidate Party Votes % Swing Redist
Robin Scott Labor 17,400 52.65 -8.93 54.06
Adin McGarvie Liberal 8,593 26.00 +5.67 26.43
Trent McCarthy Greens 7,058 21.35 +7.67 18.68
Family First 0.57
Sex Party 0.16
Other independents 0.10

2010 two-party-preferred result

Candidate Party Votes % Swing Redist
Robin Scott Labor 23,250 70.38 -4.92 70.20
Adin McGarvie Liberal 9,783 29.62 +4.92 29.80
Polling places in Preston at the 2010 Victorian state election. Central in yellow, North in red, South-East in blue, South-West in green. Click to enlarge.
Polling places in Preston at the 2010 Victorian state election. Central in yellow, North in red, South-East in blue, South-West in green. Click to enlarge.

Booth breakdown
Booths in Preston have been divided into four parts: central, north, south-east and south-west.

The ALP won a large majority of the two-party-preferred vote over the Liberal Party ranging from 67.9% in the north to 74% in the south-east.

The Greens came third, with a vote ranging from 11.9% in the north to 24% in the south-west.

Voter group GRN % ALP 2PP % Total % of votes
North 11.92 67.94 8,548 23.13
South-East 20.07 74.00 7,136 19.31
South-West 23.99 70.03 5,590 15.13
Central 17.84 69.75 5,178 14.01
Other votes 20.83 68.63 10,497 28.41
Two-party-preferred votes in Preston at the 2010 Victorian state election.
Two-party-preferred votes in Preston at the 2010 Victorian state election.
Greens primary votes in Preston at the 2010 Victorian state election.
Greens primary votes in Preston at the 2010 Victorian state election.