1949 Australian federal election 1949 Australian federal election Federal elections were held in Australia on 10 December 1949. All 121 seats in the House of Representatives and 42 of the 60 seats in the Senate were up for election. The incumbent Labor Party, led by Prime Minister Ben Chifley, was defeated by the opposition Liberal–Country coalition under Robert Menzies. Menzies became prime minister for a second time, his first term having ended in 1941. The number of MPs in both houses had been increased at the election, and single transferable vote under a proportional voting system had been introduced in the Senate. Though Labor
Prime Minister of Australia government and the state governments in which the Prime Minister, the state premiers and chief ministers, and a representative of local governments meet annually. On 1 July 2017, the Australian Government's Remuneration Tribunal adjusted the Prime Ministerial salary, raising it to its current amount of $527,852, which was equivalent then to ten times the wage of the average Australian. As of May 2018, this made the Australian Prime Minister the highest paid leader in the OECD. Whilst in office, the Prime Minister has two official residences. The primary official residence is The Lodge in Canberra. Most Prime Ministers have chosen