Alex Hawke - Election To Parliament

Election To Parliament

Hawke was elected to Parliament as Member for Mitchell on 24 November 2007 with a swing against the Liberals of 7.9 per cent; however Hawke won the seat with 61.6 per cent of the vote on a two-party preferred basis. His main competitor was Labor's Nigel Gould.

In making his maiden speech in the House of Representatives, Hawke described his political beliefs as follows: "My brand of Liberalism is more interested in what we support than what we oppose. I want not just to resist those things that are harmful but to support those things that are good. I derive no satisfaction from opposing the growth of state sponsored welfare if I cannot fan the spark of family, enterprise, self-reliance and human dignity", for which he was praised by Liberal politician Tony Abbott for "a splendid maiden speech which managed to combine a robust expression of political philosophy and a hymn of praise to his splendid electorate."

Hawke increased his margin at the 2010 federal election, with Gould again running against him, Hawke recorded a swing of 7.9 per cent and won the seat with 67.2 per cent of the vote on a two-party preferred basis.