1973 Brisbane City Council election

← 1970 31 March 1973 1976 →
All 21 seats on Brisbane City Council
First party Second party   BCP Leader Clem Jones John Andrews Party Labor Brisbane Civic Leader's seat Camp Hill Mitchelton (lost seat) Seats won 20 wards 1 ward
Lord Mayor before election Clem Jones Labor Subsequent Lord Mayor Clem Jones Labor

The 1973 Brisbane City Council election was held on 31 March 1973 to elect 21 aldermen to the City of Brisbane. The election was held as part of the statewide local government elections in Queensland, Australia. ^[1]

Contents

• Background
• Results
• Ward summary
• Aftermath
• References

The Labor Party defeated the Brisbane Civic Party (BCP) in a landslide victory, winning 20 out of 21 wards. This was despite changes introduced by the Bjelke-Petersen state government before the election, which reduced the number of wards and removed the direct lord mayoral election. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Background

Prior to the election, the Country Party state government reduced the number of wards from 28 to 21, and removed the direct election for lord mayor. This meant incumbent Clem Jones had to contest a ward, and the lord mayor was elected by a vote of aldermen after the election. The changes were aimed at Labor, who had controlled the mayoralty since 1961.

After another defeat in 1970, the Citizens' Municipal Organisation (CMO) was described as "moribund" and did not contest the election. Instead, the Brisbane Civic Party was formed and led by Mitchelton Ward councillor John Andrews. ^[5]

Results

The BCP won just one ward − Indooroopilly − while Andrews lost his seat in Mitchelton. ^[6]

Aftermath

Following the BCP's loss, the Liberal Party decided to endorse candidates, starting at the 1976 election. The CMO disbanded around this time. ^[9]

References