No . Name ( birth -- death ) Portrait Party Term of office Electorate served Elections won Ministry Ref Sir Edmund Barton ( 1849 -- 1920 ) Protectionist 1 January 1901 24 September 1903 Hunter , NSW , 1901 -- 1903 ( resigned ) 1901 Barton Alfred Deakin ( 1856 -- 1919 ) Protectionist 24 September 1903 27 April 1904 Ballaarat , Vic , 1901 -- 1913 ( retired ) 1903 1st Deakin Chris Watson ( 1867 -- 1941 ) Labour 27 April 1904 18 August 1904 Bland , NSW , 1901 -- 1906 South Sydney , NSW , 1906 -- 1910 ( retired ) -- Watson George Reid ( 1845 -- 1918 ) Free Trade 18 August 1904 5 July 1905 East Sydney , NSW , 1901 -- 1909 ( resigned ) -- Reid ( 2 ) Alfred Deakin ( 1856 -- 1919 ) Protectionist 5 July 1905 13 November 1908 Ballaarat , Vic , 1901 -- 1913 ( retired ) -- 2nd Deakin 1906 3rd Deakin 5 Andrew Fisher ( 1862 -- 1928 ) Labour 13 November 1908 2 June 1909 Wide Bay , Qld , 1901 -- 1915 ( resigned ) -- 1st Fisher ( 2 ) Alfred Deakin ( 1856 -- 1919 ) Commonwealth Liberal 2 June 1909 29 April 1910 Ballaarat , Vic , 1901 -- 1913 ( retired ) -- 4th Deakin ( 5 ) Andrew Fisher ( 1862 -- 1928 ) Labor 29 April 1910 24 June 1913 Wide Bay , Qld , 1901 -- 1915 ( resigned ) 1910 2nd Fisher 6 Joseph Cook ( 1860 -- 1947 ) Commonwealth Liberal 24 June 1913 17 September 1914 Parramatta , NSW , 1901 -- 1921 ( resigned ) 1913 Cook ( 5 ) Andrew Fisher ( 1862 -- 1928 ) Labor 17 September 1914 27 October 1915 Wide Bay , Qld , 1901 -- 1915 ( resigned ) 1914 3rd Fisher Billy Hughes ( 1862 -- 1952 ) Labor 27 October 1915 14 November 1916 West Sydney , NSW , 1901 -- 1917 Bendigo , Vic , 1917 -- 1922 North Sydney , NSW , 1922 -- 1949 Bradfield , NSW , 1949 -- 1952 ( died ) -- 1st Hughes 7 National Labor 14 November 1916 17 February 1917 -- 2nd Hughes Nationalist 17 February 1917 9 February 1923 -- 3rd Hughes 1917 4th Hughes 1919 5th Hughes 8 Stanley Bruce ( 1883 -- 1967 ) Nationalist ( Coalition ) 9 February 1923 22 October 1929 Flinders , Vic , 1918 -- 1929 ( defeated ) ; 1931 -- 1933 ( resigned ) 1922 1st Bruce 1925 2nd Bruce 1928 3rd Bruce 9 James Scullin ( 1876 -- 1953 ) Labor 22 October 1929 6 January 1932 Corangamite , Vic , 1910 -- 1913 ( defeated ) Yarra , Vic , 1922 -- 1949 ( retired ) 1929 Scullin 10 Joseph Lyons ( 1879 -- 1939 ) United Australia ( Coalition ) 6 January 1932 7 April 1939 † Wilmot , Tas , 1929 -- 1939 ( died ) 1931 1st Lyons 1934 2nd Lyons -- 3rd Lyons 1937 4th Lyons 11 Sir Earle Page ( 1880 -- 1961 ) Country ( Coalition ) 7 April 1939 26 April 1939 Cowper , NSW 1919 -- 1961 ( defeated ) -- Page 12 Robert Menzies ( 1894 -- 1978 ) United Australia ( Coalition ) 26 April 1939 28 August 1941 Kooyong , Vic , 1934 -- 1966 ( resigned ) -- 1st Menzies 2nd Menzies 1940 3rd Menzies 13 Arthur Fadden ( 1894 -- 1973 ) Country ( Coalition ) 28 August 1941 7 October 1941 Darling Downs , Qld 1936 -- 1949 McPherson , Qld 1949 -- 1958 ( retired ) -- Fadden 14 John Curtin ( 1885 -- 1945 ) Labor 7 October 1941 5 July 1945 † Fremantle , WA , 1928 -- 1931 ( defeated ) ; 1934 -- 1945 ( died ) -- 1st Curtin 1943 2nd Curtin 15 Frank Forde ( 1890 -- 1983 ) Labor 6 July 1945 13 July 1945 Capricornia , Qld , 1922 -- 1946 ( defeated ) -- Forde 16 Ben Chifley ( 1885 -- 1951 ) Labor 13 July 1945 19 December 1949 Macquarie , NSW , 1928 -- 1931 ( defeated ) ; 1940 -- 1951 ( died ) -- 1st Chifley 1946 2nd Chifley ( 12 ) Sir Robert Menzies ( 1894 -- 1978 ) Liberal ( Coalition ) 19 December 1949 26 January 1966 Kooyong , Vic , 1934 -- 1966 ( resigned ) 1949 4th Menzies 1951 5th Menzies 1954 6th Menzies 1955 7th Menzies 1958 8th Menzies 1961 9th Menzies 1963 10th Menzies 17 Harold Holt ( 1908 -- 1967 ) Liberal ( Coalition ) 26 January 1966 19 December 1967 † Fawkner , Vic , 1935 -- 1949 Higgins , Vic , 1949 -- 1967 ( disappeared ) -- 1st Holt 1966 2nd Holt 18 John McEwen ( 1900 -- 1980 ) Country ( Coalition ) 19 December 1967 10 January 1968 Echuca , Vic , 1934 -- 1937 Indi , Vic , 1937 -- 1949 Murray , Vic , 1949 -- 1971 ( resigned ) -- McEwen 19 John Gorton ( 1911 -- 2002 ) Liberal ( Coalition ) 10 January 1968 10 March 1971 Senator 1950 -- 1968 ( resigned ) MP for Higgins , Vic , 1968 -- 1975 ( retired ) -- 1st Gorton 1969 2nd Gorton 20 William McMahon ( 1908 -- 1988 ) Liberal ( Coalition ) 10 March 1971 5 December 1972 Lowe , NSW , 1949 -- 1982 ( resigned ) -- McMahon 21 Gough Whitlam ( 1916 -- 2014 ) Labor 5 December 1972 11 November Werriwa , NSW , 1952 -- 1978 ( resigned ) 1972 1st Whitlam -- 2nd Whitlam 3rd Whitlam 22 Malcolm Fraser ( 1930 -- 2015 ) Liberal ( Coalition ) 11 November 11 March Wannon , Vic , 1955 -- 1983 ( resigned ) -- 1st Fraser 2nd Fraser 1977 3rd Fraser 1980 4th Fraser 23 Bob Hawke ( 1929 -- ) Labor 11 March 20 December 1991 Wills , Vic , 1980 -- 1992 ( resigned ) 1st Hawke 1984 2nd Hawke 3rd Hawke 1990 4th Hawke 24 Paul Keating ( 1944 -- ) Labor 20 December 1991 11 March Blaxland , NSW , 1969 -- 1996 ( resigned ) -- 1st Keating 1993 2nd Keating 25 John Howard ( 1939 -- ) Liberal ( Coalition ) 11 March 3 December 2007 Bennelong , NSW , 1974 -- 2007 ( defeated ) 1st Howard 1998 2nd Howard 2001 3rd Howard 4th Howard 26 Kevin Rudd ( 1957 -- ) Labor 3 December 2007 24 June Griffith , Qld , 1998 -- 2013 ( resigned ) 2007 1st Rudd 27 Julia Gillard ( 1961 -- ) Labor 24 June 27 June 2013 Lalor , Vic , 1998 -- 2013 ( retired ) -- 1st Gillard 2nd Gillard ( 26 ) Kevin Rudd ( 1957 -- ) Labor 27 June 2013 18 September 2013 Griffith , Qld , 1998 -- 2013 ( resigned ) -- 2nd Rudd 28 Tony Abbott ( 1957 -- ) Liberal ( Coalition ) 18 September 2013 15 September 2015 Warringah , NSW , since 1994 2013 Abbott 29 Malcolm Turnbull ( 1954 -- ) Liberal ( Coalition ) 15 September 2015 Incumbent Wentworth , NSW , since 2004 -- 1st Turnbull 2016 2nd Turnbull

Question: when was the first australian prime minister elected
Answer: Sir Edmund Barton