# Electoral district of Orange

Orange is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is a regional electorate that covers four local government areas in their entirety: the City of Orange, Cabonne Council, Parkes Shire and Forbes Shire.
The seat has been held by Philip Donato since a by-election in November 2016. Donato was initially elected as a member of the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party but resigned in 2022 and became an Independent.

## History

The electorate of Orange was created in 1859. Between 1920 and 1927, Orange and Hartley were absorbed into Bathurst, which elected three members under proportional representation. In 1927, Bathurst, Hartley and Orange were recreated as single-member electorates.
The area leans strongly toward the National Party. The Labor Party hasn't held the seat since 1947, although it came close to winning at a 1996 by-election. The Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party won the seat at the 2016 by-election, after Andrew Gee resigned to successfully contest the federal electorate of Calare.

## Members for Orange
### First incarnation 1859-1920

Single member (1859–1880) :
| Member | Party | Term |
| Saul Samuel | None | 1859–1860 |
| John Peisley | None | 1860–1862 |
| James Martin | None | 1862–1863 |
| Charles Cowper Jr. | None | 1863–1864 |
| William Forlonge | None | 1864–1867 |
| George McKay | None | 1867–1869 |
| Saul Samuel | None | 1869–1872 |
| Harris Nelson | None | 1872–1877 |
| Edward Combes | None | 1877–1879 |
| Andrew Kerr | None | 1879–1880 |
Two members (1880–1894) :
| Member | Party | Term | Member | Party | Term |
| Andrew Kerr | None | 1880–1882 | William Clarke | None | 1880–1887 |
| Thomas Dalton | None | 1882–1887 | William Clarke | None | 1880–1887 |
| Thomas Dalton | Protectionist | 1887–1891 | William Clarke | Free Trade | 1887–1889 |
| Thomas Dalton | Protectionist | 1887–1891 | James Torpy | Protectionist | 1889–1894 |
| Harry Newman | Labor | 1891–1894 | James Torpy | Protectionist | 1889–1894 |
Single member (1894–1920) :
| Harry Newman | Free Trade | 1894–1901 |
| Harry Newman | Liberal Reform | 1901–1904 |
| Albert Gardiner | Labor | 1904–1907 |
| John Fitzpatrick | Liberal Reform | 1907–1917 |
| John Fitzpatrick | Nationalist | 1917–1920 |

### Second incarnation 1927-

Second incarnation (1927–present) :
| Member | Party | Term |
| John Fitzpatrick | Nationalist | 1927–1930 |
| William Folster | Labor | 1930–1932 |
| Alwyn Tonking | United Australia | 1932–1941 |
| Bob O'Halloran | Labor | 1941–1947 |
| (Sir) Charles Cutler | Country | 1947–1975 |
| Garry West | Country, National | 1976–1996 |
| Russell Turner | National | 1996–2011 |
| Andrew Gee | National | 2011–2016 |
| Philip Donato | Shooters, Fishers, Farmers | 2016–2022 |
| Philip Donato | Independent | 2022–present |

## Election results

2023 New South Wales state election: Orange :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | Philip Donato | 26,815 | 53.08 | +53.08 |
| | National | Tony Mileto | 11,123 | 22.02 | −3.80 |
| | Labor | Heather Dunn | 4,939 | 9.78 | −0.41 |
| | Shooters, Fishers, Farmers | Aaron Kelly | 2,752 | 5.45 | −43.70 |
| | Greens | David Mallard | 2,149 | 4.25 | −0.95 |
| | Legalise Cannabis | Patricia Holt | 1,601 | 3.17 | +3.17 |
| | Sustainable Australia | George Bate | 785 | 1.55 | +1.55 |
| | Public Education | Gillian Bramley | 354 | 0.70 | +0.70 |
| Total formal votes | Total formal votes | Total formal votes | 50,518 | 97.35 | +0.8 |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 1,377 | 2.65 | −0.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 51,895 | 89.54 | −1.97 |
| Notional two-party-preferred count ||||||
| | National | Tony Mileto | 17,138 | 62.77 | −2.28 |
| | Labor | Heather Dunn | 10,165 | 37.23 | +2.28 |
| Two-candidate-preferred result ||||||
| | Independent | Philip Donato | 31,212 | 71.86 | +71.86 |
| | National | Tony Mileto | 12,225 | 28.14 | −6.68 |
| | Member changed to Independent from Shooters, Fishers, Farmers | Member changed to Independent from Shooters, Fishers, Farmers | | | |