Has the resignation of a political leader in a Westminster style parliament ever forced an election call?
score:5
Accepted answer
The Westminster system does not compel, either by law or by convention, a member to resign from his/her electorate and force a by-election upon resignation or loss of confidence as head of government. The decision is left up to the member, who may choose to do so after a satisfyingly long career or in an attempt to allow the party to present a fresh face without being encumbered by someone synonymous with past unpopular policies.
In Australia, very few Prime Ministers have resigned from parliament straight after having resigned as Prime Minister:
- Edmund Barton, the first Prime Minister, resigned in 1903 to join the newly established High Court.
- Andrew Fisher resigned as Prime Minister and from his seat without much explanation in 1915.
- Robert Menzies retired in 1966 after having been Australia's longest serving Prime Minister. He had earlier resigned as Prime Minister in 1941 but had stayed on in parliament.
- Malcolm Fraser resigned from parliament after losing the 1983 election.
- Bob Hawke resigned from parliament 3 months after losing to a leadership challenge from Paul Keating. At the time, he had been Australia's second longest serving Prime Minister.
- Paul Keating resigned from parliament after losing the 1996 election.
I'm not as familiar with the poliical history of other countries. Some examples of those who have not resigned from parliament straight after resigning as Prime Minister are John Major (UK), Margaret Thatcher (UK), Paul Martin (Canada) and Jenny Shipley (NZ).
More post
- π What are these objects around FranΓ§ois Ravaillac's portrait?
- π How were fortification doors protected against fire?
- π Why did Churchill accept the Order of the Garter in 1953?
- π Why were ancient cities protected by walls?
- π What were the thoughts of the Celts, Romans and other ancient European people about the standing stones which survive from prehistoric times?
- π Can someone identify this coin? Ξ€ΞΞΞ‘ΞΞΞ(Ξ₯) (Ξ)ΞΞ£ΞΞΞΞ©(Ξ£)
- π Noah Versus Utnapishtim
- π Are rural residents more likely to survive large scale war (> 1 million deaths) than urban residents? (Data based answers only)
- π Why did the US drop nuclear bombs on a weakened Japan?
- π Is there a majority viewpoint for the fall of the ancient Egyptian civilization?
- π What wiped the Buddhism traces from Kerala History?
- π Did Emperor Gaozu of Han allow people he conquered to keep their cultural identities?
- π How did Medieval European river passenger transport develop?
- π What does "the anointed of the Lord" mean?
- π Where was Carl Sagan working on a plan to detonate a nuke on the Moon? Where was he applying when he leaked it?
- π Normandy: Why did the landing craft open on the front?
- π Are the Zemstvo Statistics Digitized?
- π Did China colonize any countries?
- π What was the basic structure of power in the CPSU and how were the politicians at each level chosen?
- π How were little children dressed in medieval times?
- π "America is the richest country in the history of the world" -- Would a historian consider this true?
- π Index of importance / economic value various minerals during the Industrial Revolution
- π Were Medieval Britons aware of the existence of the Roman Empire?
- π What happened to Saxe Altenburg circa 1827?
- π How were concussions treated in late 19th-century America?
- π Why were Spain and Portugal neutral / not invaded in WWII?
- π What were Russia and the US were planning to do if Ukraine refused to give up their nuclear arsenal?
- π What was "primitive labor rent" or "mains mortales"?
- π When did Kievan Rus' rulers become culturally Slavic?
- π Was there ever any co-existence solution to peace with Israel that the Arab Palestinian side proposed or said would accept?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- π Has the resignation of a political leader in a Westminster style parliament ever forced an election call?
- π Has there ever been a case when a traitorous military commander took command again for the side he betrayed?
- π Has there ever been a cold war other than between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R.?
- π Has the United States ever had a non-Christian President?
- π Has an heir ever made the country believe the current ruler died in order to take over the throne?
- π What is the most number of times someone has become leader of a European country?
- π Has there ever been a major migration from the New World to the Old World? If not, why?
- π Has there ever been anything like the oil boom we see today?
- π Has there ever been a true kidnapped princess from anywhere in the world?
- π Has there ever been an archbishop or bishop younger than the 16-year-old James of Nicosia?
- π Has chattel slavery ever been used as a criminal punishment in the USA since the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment?
- π Has there ever been a serious effort to reform the US Electoral College system?
- π Has there ever been a truly bilingual country prior to the contemporary period?
- π Has the United States ever been formally condemned by the United Nations?
- π Has a major war ever occured and a map before the war looked exactly the same after?
- π Has any medieval army ever fought 3 or more distinct battles on the same day?
- π Has Catholic excommunication ever caused the dethronement of any king?
- π Has the U.S. Navy ever commissioned the building of a warship overseas?
- π Has the sun ever set on the British Empire? If so when?
- π Has Section 2 of the 14th amendment ever been enforced?
- π Since the inception of the United States, has the term "America" ever referred to something more than simply "the United States"?
- π Has there ever been a mass migration of factories comparable to the USSR's in WW2?
- π Has any national leader ever climbed as far as fast as Ulysses S Grant?
- π What was the largest land area that Germany has ever controlled?
- π Has there ever been a US election that flipped as many state seats as the 2010 midterm elections?
- π Has a book ever caused the ousting of a dictator?
- π Has there ever been an attempted military takeover of a democracy in the western world?
- π Has there ever been an election where the two biggest parties form a coalition to govern?
- π Has there ever been a situation where the "motherland" treated its colonies well anywhere in the world?
- π Has there ever been any assassination so that another assassination could happen during the first one's funeral?