Western Australia Party


The Western Australia Party is a registered political party in Western Australia, established by Julie Matheson as Julie Matheson for Western Australia to contest the 2017 state election. It was registered by the Western Australian Electoral Commission on 18 October 2016.

History

Matheson established the party amid community anger over the government introducing Development Assessment Panels while she was a member of the City of Subiaco council. The party endorsed candidates in 20 Legislative Assembly seats for the 2017 election and in all six regions for the Legislative Council. Matheson herself stood as a candidate in the Legislative Council's North Metropolitan Region.
In July 2017, the Western Australian Electoral Commission approved a name change to the Western Australia Party.
The party contested its first election in 2018, when Ron Norris ran in the Cottesloe by-election. He finished 3rd with 9% of the vote.
It contested the Darling Range by-election and received 5.8% of the vote, outpolling One Nation and the Greens in many booths but falling behind them both overall.
The party applied to be registered for federal elections. The notice of application was published by the Australian Electoral Commission on 15 June 2018, inviting any objections to be lodged by 15 July 2018. Julie Matheson is the registered officer of the Western Australia Party. It was granted registration on 30 August 2018.
On 12 May 2020, the party gained its first member of parliament when independent member of the Legislative Council Charles Smith joined the party.