Created 1949 Electors 103,539 (2016) Area 61 km² Elector 103,539 | Demographic Inner Metropolitan Founded 1949 | |
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The Division of Blaxland is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales. The division was created in 1949 and is named after Gregory Blaxland, a farmer and an early Australian explorer of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales.
The division is based in the western suburbs of Sydney, and includes the working-class suburbs of Bass Hill, Berala, Birrong, Chester Hill, Georges Hall, Lansdowne, Lansvale, Potts Hill, Regents Park, Sefton, Villawood, and Yagoona; and parts of the business park and airport at Bankstown Aerodrome; as well as parts of Auburn, Bankstown, Canley Vale, Carramar, Condell Park, Guildford, Lidcombe, Merrylands, South Granville, Villawood, and Yennora.
The current Member for Blaxland, since the 2007 federal election, is Jason Clare, a member of the Australian Labor Party.
History
The division has been a safe seat for Labor since its creation; western Sydney has been a Labor heartland for over a century. Its most notable member has been Paul Keating, who was Prime Minister of Australia 1991-96. In 2007, Keating's successor, Michael Hatton, lost preselection for this seat to Jason Clare, who was a staffer for former New South Wales Premier Bob Carr.