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A by-election was held for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly seat of Davidson on 2 May 1992.
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It was triggered by the resignation of former Liberal Party-turned Independent MP, Terry Metherell, after the scandal known as the 'Metherell Crisis'.
The seat was subsequently won by Andrew Humpherson of the Liberal Party. However the Liberals suffered a 16% drop in their primary vote, and a 14% drop in their two party preferred vote.
Background
The seat of Davidson, a traditionally safe Liberal seat, was held since 1981 by Dr Terry Metherell, a controversial Minister for Education in the first term of the Greiner government
Charges of tax avoidance forced his resignation from the Ministry in 1990. However, there was speculation that he would be re-appointed to the ministry when the Greiner government was re-elected in 1991. However, at the 1991 election, the Greiner government emerged without a clear majority and all hopes of a ministerial appointment for Metherell were squashed. Feeling betrayed and rejected from his party, in October 1991 Metherell resigned from the Liberal Party live on the 7:30 Report, without having given his colleagues notice.
The government subsequently created a job for Metherell, a position with the Environment Protection Agency, which he accepted, effectively engineering a vacancy in a seat the Liberal Party would recover at a by-election. Labor did not nominate a candidate, but a field of Independents and minor parties reduced the Liberal vote by 16%, and 14% after preferences.
Results
The Liberal Party retained the seat, despite a swing of 16%. The Liberal candidate, Warringah Councillor since 1985, Andrew Humpherson, was declared the winner against Independent Candidate and Warringah Councillor since 1980, Julie Sutton.