Division of North Sydney facts for kids

The Division of North Sydney was an area in New South Wales, Australia, that elected a person to represent it in the Australian Parliament. It was one of the original areas created for the first federal election in 1901.

On 12 September 2024, the Australian Electoral Commission announced that this area would no longer exist as an electoral division. Its voters were moved to other nearby areas like Warringah, Bradfield, and Bennelong. The Division of North Sydney officially ended in 2025.

History of the North Sydney Division

The suburb of North Sydney, which the division was named after.

The Division of North Sydney was created in 1900. It was one of the first 75 areas to vote in the very first federal election in Australia in 1901.

When it was first created, the area was much larger. It even reached the Northern Beaches. However, a lot of that land became part of the Warringah division in 1922.

In 2015, the North Sydney area had a very high number of families with high incomes. It was the second-highest in the whole country.

Before it was abolished, North Sydney was one of only two divisions in New South Wales that had never elected a member from the Labor Party. The Liberal Party usually held the seat.

Notable Members of Parliament

The Liberal Party's hold on the seat was broken in 1990 by Ted Mack. He was known as the "father of the independents" because he was a politician who did not belong to a major political party. Ted Mack had represented this area in the state parliament before. He held the North Sydney seat for two terms. He then retired in 1996 for the same reason he left state parliament: he wanted to avoid getting a special pension for politicians.

After Ted Mack retired, Joe Hockey won the seat back for the Liberal Party in 1996. He held it easily until 2015. Joe Hockey was an important politician, serving as the Treasurer (the person in charge of the country's money) from 2013 to 2015.

In 2015, Joe Hockey resigned from parliament. A special election, called a by-election, was held to choose a new representative. Trent Zimmerman, who used to work for Joe Hockey, won the seat for the Liberal Party. He became the first openly LGBTI member of the House of Representatives.

Trent Zimmerman won the seat again in 2016 and 2019. However, in 2022, he lost the election. He was defeated by Kylea Tink, who was an independent politician. She was the second non-Liberal person to ever win the seat.

The most famous member for North Sydney was Billy Hughes. He was the Prime Minister of Australia from 1915 to 1923. He also served as a minister in several other governments. Billy Hughes is the longest-serving politician in Australian history. He moved to the Bradfield division in 1949 and passed away while still a member of parliament in 1952.

Other important members included Ted Mack, Joe Hockey, and Dugald Thomson, who was a minister in the government of George Reid.

The Australian Electoral Commission regularly reviews the boundaries of electoral divisions. As part of this review, they decided to abolish the North Sydney division from the 2025 federal election. Its voters were then moved to the Warringah, Bradfield, and Bennelong divisions.

Where Was North Sydney Located?

The Division of North Sydney was located along Sydney's Lower North Shore. It was named after the suburb of North Sydney.

On its final boundaries, the division included many suburbs. These included Artarmon, Cammeray, Castlecrag, Crows Nest, Greenwich, Henley, Hunters Hill, Huntleys Cove, Huntleys Point, Kirribilli, Lane Cove, Lane Cove North, Lane Cove West, Lavender Bay, Linley Point, Longueville, McMahons Point, Middle Cove, Milsons Point, Naremburn, North Willoughby, Northbridge, Northwood, Riverview, St Leonards, Waverton, Willoughby, Willoughby East, Wollstonecraft, and Woolwich. It also included parts of Chatswood, Chatswood West, Cremorne, Gladesville, Gore Hill, and Neutral Bay.

Members of Parliament for North Sydney

This table shows the people who represented the Division of North Sydney in the Australian Parliament.

Image		Member	Party	Term	Notes
		Dugald Thomson (1849–1922)	Free Trade	29 March 1901 – 1906	Was previously a member for Warringah in the New South Wales Parliament. Served as a minister. Retired from politics.
			Anti-Socialist	1906 – 26 May 1909
			Liberal	26 May 1909 – 19 February 1910
		George Edwards (1855–1911)		13 April 1910 – 4 February 1911	Was previously a member for the Division of South Sydney. Passed away while in office.
		(Sir) Granville Ryrie (1865–1937)		11 March 1911 – 17 February 1917	Was previously a member for Queanbeyan in the New South Wales Parliament. Moved to the Division of Warringah.
			Nationalist	17 February 1917 – 16 December 1922
		Billy Hughes (1862–1952)		16 December 1922 – September 1929	Was previously a member for the Division of Bendigo. Served as Prime Minister from 1915 to 1923. Served as a minister in several governments. Was a leader of the United Australia Party. Moved to the Division of Bradfield.
			Independent Nationalist	September 1929 – 2 December 1929
			Australian	2 December 1929 – 7 May 1931
			United Australia	7 May 1931 – 14 April 1944
			Independent	14 April 1944 – 13 September 1945
			Liberal	13 September 1945 – 10 December 1949
		William Jack (1890–1982)		10 December 1949 – 31 October 1966	Retired from politics.
		Bill Graham (1919–1995)		26 November 1966 – 19 September 1980	Was previously a member for the Division of St George. Retired from politics.
		John Spender (1935–2022)		18 October 1980 – 24 March 1990	Lost the election.
		Ted Mack (1933–2018)	Independent	24 March 1990 – 29 January 1996	Was previously a member for North Shore in the New South Wales Parliament. Retired from politics.
		Joe Hockey (1965–)	Liberal	2 March 1996 – 23 October 2015	Served as a minister in different governments. Resigned from politics.
		Trent Zimmerman (1968–)		5 December 2015 – 21 May 2022	Lost the election. Was the first openly LGBTI member of the House of Representatives.
		Kylea Tink (1970–)	Independent	21 May 2022 – 28 March 2025	Retired after the North Sydney division was abolished in 2025.

Election Results