Election of the Legislative Assembly

The 59 members of the Legislative Assembly are elected to Parliament for four years through a preferential voting system. Preferential voting was originally introduced for Assembly elections in 1908, and by 1911 it became compulsory for voters to indicate their preferences for all candidates.

Women won the right to vote in 1899 provided they owned property. In 1920 legislation was passed that allowed the election of women to the Western Australian Parliament, and in 1921 Edith Cowan became the second woman in the British Empire to take her seat in Parliament (Lady Astor was elected to the House of Commons in 1919).

Voting was made compulsory for Legislative Assembly elections from 1939, and voters needed to be better informed when carrying out their civic duty of voting. Effectively they contributed to a parliamentary system which more accurately reflected the wishes of the constituents in each electorate.

The 59 Legislative Assembly single member electorates are divided into 42 metropolitan districts and 17 country districts, with certain Assembly districts grouped within each Legislative Council Region.