1937 Australian federal election

(0.96 pp) 38 seats were needed for a majority in the House 19 (of the 36) seats of the Senate

A federal election was held in Australia on 23 October 1937. All 74 seats in the House of Representatives, and 19 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent UAP–Country coalition government, led by Prime Minister Joseph Lyons, defeated the opposition Labor Party under John Curtin.

The election is notable in that the Country Party achieved its highest-ever primary (first preference) vote in the lower house, thereby winning nearly a quarter of all lower-house seats. At the 1934 election nine seats in New South Wales had been won by Lang Labor. Following the reunion of the two Labor parties in February 1936, these were held by their members as ALP seats at the 1937 election. With the party's wins in Ballaarat and Gwydir (initially at a by-election on 8 March 1937), the ALP had a net gain of 11 seats compared with the previous election.

This was the first federal election that future Prime Ministers Harold Holt and Arthur Fadden contested as members of parliament, having entered parliament at the 1935 Fawkner by-election and 1936 Darling Downs by-election respectively.

This was the first federal election under George VI who became head of state after his brother Edward VIII who abdicated in December the previous year.

Results

House of Representatives

Party	First preference votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change	Two-party-preferred (estimated)
	UAP–Country coalition	1.774,805	49.26	–1.01	43	–4
		United Australia	*1,214,526*	*33.71*	*+0.73*	*28*	*0*
		Country	*560,279*	*15.55*	*+2.93*	*15*	*+1*
		Labor	1,555,737	43.17	+16.36	29	+11
		Social Credit	79,432	2.20	−2.49	0	0
		Communist	17,153	0.48	+0.48	0	0
		Independents	176,214	4.89	+2.38	3	+2
	Total	3,603,223			**75**
		**UAP–Country coalition**	**Win**	**50.60**	−2.90	**43**	+1
		Labor		49.40	+2.90	29	+11

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Notes

• Four members were elected unopposed, all from the Labor Party.
• Independents: Alexander Wilson (Wimmera, Vic) and Percy Spender (Warringah, NSW).
• The member for Northern Territory, Adair Blain (independent), had voting rights only for issues relating to the Territory, and so is not included in the table.

Senate

Party	First preference votes	%	Swing	Seats won	Seats held	Change
		Labor	1,699,172	48.48	+20.40	16	16
	UAP–Country coalition	1,636,889	46.71	–6.51	3	20
	UAP–Country joint ticket	*1,005,247*	*28.68*	*+10.44*	*0*	*N/A*
		United Australia	*565,161*	*16.13*	*−4.54*	*3*	*16*
		Country	*66,481*	*1.90*	*−12.41*	*0*	*4*
		Social Credit	49,801	1.42	−1.36	0	0
		Independent	118,768	3.39	+2.93	0	0
	Total	3,504,630			19	36