NAT 17.8%
Incumbent MP
Tim McCurdy, since 2014. Previously member for Murray Valley 2010-2014.
Geography
Northern Victoria. Ovens Valley covers the towns of Bright, Cobram, Glenrowan, Myrtleford, Wangaratta and Yarrawonga, and is centred on Wangaratta. The electorate covers the entirety of Wangaratta Shire and Alpine Shire as well as the eastern half of Moira Shire.
History
Ovens Valley was created in 2014 as a successor to the electorate of Murray Valley. Murray Valley was first created in 1945, and was always held by the Country/National Party, until it was renamed in 2014.
The seat was first won in 1945 by George Moss. He became leader of the Country Party in 1964, and served in that role until 1970. He retired from Murray Valley in 1973.
Murray Valley was won in 1973 by the National Party’s Bill Baxter. In 1976, a redistribution shifted Murray Valley’s boundaries, and he decided to contest the neighbouring seat of Benambra, where sitting National Thomas Mitchell was retiring after 29 years. Baxter topped the poll on primary votes but was defeated by the Liberal candidate.
Baxter then moved to the Legislative Council, winning a by-election for North Eastern Province in 1978. He held his seat until1984, when he resigned to run against the sitting Liberal MP for the overlapping federal seat of Indi, coming third on primary votes. He won back his Legislative Council seat at a 1985 by-election, and served until 2006, when his Legislative Council seat was abolished and he unsuccessfully attempted to win the Legislative Assembly seat of Benambra.
Murray Valley was won in 1976 by the National Party’s Ken Jasper. Jasper was re-elected in Murray Valley nine times, and retired in 2010.
Nationals MP Tim McCurdy won Murray Valley in 2010, and moved to Ovens Valley in 2014. He has retained Ovens Valley ever since.
- Steve Manning (Independent)
- Tim McCurdy (Nationals)
Assessment
One Nation would be hoping to pick up this seat.
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | Swing |
| Tim McCurdy | Nationals | 21,057 | 52.1 | +10.4 |
| Zuvele Leschen | Labor | 8,369 | 20.7 | 0.0 |
| Zoe Kromar | Greens | 3,625 | 9.0 | +4.3 |
| Julian Fidge | Liberal Democrats | 2,995 | 7.4 | +7.4 |
| Mark Bugge | Freedom Party | 1,932 | 4.8 | +4.8 |
| Anna Wise | Family First | 1,403 | 3.5 | +3.5 |
| Aisha Slater | Animal Justice | 1,009 | 2.5 | +2.5 |
| Informal | 2,101 | 4.9 |
2022 two-party-preferred result
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | Swing |
| Tim McCurdy | Nationals | 27,395 | 67.8 | +5.7 |
| Zuvele Leschen | Labor | 12,987 | 32.2 | -5.7 |
Booths have been divided into four areas: central, east, west and Wangaratta.
The Nationals won a majority of the two-party-preferred vote in all four areas, ranging from 61.2% in the east to 75% in the west.
| Voter group | NAT 2PP | Total votes | % of votes |
| East | 61.2 | 5,413 | 13.3 |
| West | 75.0 | 4,248 | 10.4 |
| Wangaratta | 64.2 | 3,389 | 8.3 |
| Central | 72.0 | 2,440 | 6.0 |
| Pre-poll | 69.3 | 21,287 | 52.2 |
| Other votes | 63.7 | 3,974 | 9.8 |
Election results in Ovens Valley at the 2022 Victorian state election
Toggle between two-party-preferred votes and primary votes for the Nationals and Labor.
I have wondered if Labor put some effort into area like Bright, Mt Beauty, Harrietville and the Wangaratta booths if they could narrow it up significantly.
@ SpaceFish
I dont think Wangaratta i think while it is a big town it is more conservative but if Labor puts effort Bright, Mt Beauty, Harrietville would be won with bigger margins but they have low population. It is why even in Benembra it is actually places like Beechworth which are good for Labor more than Wodonga itself
Tim mccurdy isnt too popular from what ive heard
Surely this seat is vulnerable to a strong independent? Just need to look at crossover between OV and polling booth results from Indi in 2025 to see OV makes up much of Helen Haines strongest regions. Tim McCurdy doesn’t seem to have much profile locally, so not sure how strong his incumbency advantage would be considered the travails of the National Party nationally?