Division of Calare

The Division of Calare is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales. The division was first contested at the 1906 election; created to replace the abolished Division of Canobolas, and is named for the local Aboriginal name for the Lachlan River, which runs through the western part of the division. The name should be pronounced Kal-ah-ree, but the pronunciation Kul-air is established.

The division stretches from Forbes and Parkes in the west, to Orange, Bathurst, Lithgow and Oberon in the east.

The current Member for Calare, since the 2007 federal election, is John Cobb, a member of the The Nationals.

History

The division originally encompassed Forbes, Orange and Parkes. Subsequent boundary changes moved it eastwards to encompass Bathurst, Lithgow and Oberon. On these boundaries it was notionally a marginal seat between the Australian Labor Party (which held it 1983-96) and the National Party, but it was held comfortably by an independent, Peter Andren, from 1996 to 2007. Andren was not a candidate for the 2007 election: he intended to run for a Senate seat but was diagnosed with cancer in 2007 and died during the election campaign.