Leightonfield by-election, 2005

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← 2002 	2 July 2005 	2006 →
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The electorate of Leightonfield (NS) in the Enderronian Parliament	The electorate of Leightonfield (NS) in the Enderronian Parliament	The electorate of Leightonfield (NS) in the Enderronian Parliament
 	 	
 	 	
Candidate 	Norm Anderson 	Karen Phelps
Party 	Liberal 	Social Democrats
Popular vote 	42,678 	35,315
Percentage 	43.12% 	35.68%
Swing 	13.85pp 	9.53pp
TPP 	53.11% 	46.89%
TPP swing 	9.38pp 	9.38pp
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MP before election 	MP before election 	Elected MP
Zack SmithSocial Democrats 	Zack SmithSocial Democrats 	Norm AndersonLiberal
The 2005 Leightonfield by-election was held on 2 July 2005 to elect the next Member of Parliament for the electorate of Leightonfield in the Enderronian Parliament. The by-election was triggered following the resignation of incumbent Social Democratic MP Zack Smith.
In a major upset, Liberal candidate Norm Anderson won the by-election, defeating the Social Democratic candidate Karen Phelps. The Social Democrats' primary vote plummeted by more than 9 percent, and Anderson took the seat off the SDP, for the first time since 1970, with 53 percent of the two-party-preferred vote.
It was only the second federal by-election in recent Enderronian history at which the government of the day won a seat from the opposition. The result was described as a significant loss for Social Democratic Party leader Jason Huynh; he later led the party to defeat at the 2006 federal election, and subsequently resigned as leader.
==Background==
The electoral district of Leightonfield, with a territory covering the eponymous city in far western New Surrey, had been continuously held by the Social Democrats since the 1970 federal election, and was considered a fairly safe seat for the party, thanks to its blue-collar demographic and status as a transport hub. However, the seat was nearly lost to the United Party at the 1986 and 1990 elections, despite the Social Democrats winning government at the latter.
Zack Smith succeeded longtime member Michael Warner at the 1994 federal election. He was comfortably re-elected in 1998, but suffered a swing in 2002 as the Social Democratic government was defeated, retaining Leightonfield by a margin of 6.3 percent.
After an extended period of ill health, Smith announced his resignation on 12 May 2005, triggering the by-election.
==Candidates==
Candidates (6) in ballot paper order	Candidates (6) in ballot paper order	Candidates (6) in ballot paper order	Candidates (6) in ballot paper order
Party 	Party 	Candidate 	Background
width="1%" 	Libertarian 	Tony D'Amico 	Businessman and owner of local car dealership D'Amico Motors.
 	Independent 	Michelle Statham 	Office manager and perennial candidate. Contested Monash at the 2002 federal election.
 	Liberal 	Norm Anderson 	Mayor of Leightonfield.
 	Independent 	Brian Nguyen 	Real estate agent. Contested Leightonfield at the 2002 federal election.
 	Greens 	Steve Buckley 	Leightonfield City councillor. Contested Leightonfield at the 2002 federal election.
 	Social Democrats 	Karen Phelps 	Registered nurse and former high school teacher. Contested Leightonfield as an independent candidate at the 2002 federal election.
==Results==
Leightonfield by-election, 2005	Leightonfield by-election, 2005 	Leightonfield by-election, 2005 	Leightonfield by-election, 2005	Leightonfield by-election, 2005	Leightonfield by-election, 2005
Party 	Party 	Candidate 	Votes 	% 	±%
 	Liberal 	Norm Anderson 	42,678 	43.12 	+13.85
 	Social Democrats 	Karen Phelps 	35,315 	35.68 	–9.53
 	Libertarian 	Tony D'Amico 	13,095 	13.23 	+11.83
 	Greens 	Steve Buckley 	4,870 	4.92 	–1.24
 	Independent 	Michelle Statham 	1,653 	1.67 	+1.67
 	Independent 	Brian Nguyen 	1,366 	1.38 	–0.19
Total formal votes 	Total formal votes 	Total formal votes 	98,976 	95.45 	+1.09
Informal votes 	Informal votes 	Informal votes 	4,722 	4.55 	–1.09
Turnout 	Turnout 	Turnout 	103,698 	89.03 	–5.53
Two-party-preferred result 	Two-party-preferred result 	Two-party-preferred result 	Two-party-preferred result 	Two-party-preferred result 	Two-party-preferred result
 	Liberal 	Norm Anderson 	52,566 	53.11 	+9.38
 	Social Democrats 	Karen Phelps 	46,410 	46.89 	–9.38
 	Liberal gain from Social Democrats	Liberal gain from Social Democrats	Swing 	+9.38 	
==Aftermath==
The Social Democrats' loss in the by-election was largely attributed to a combination of the wide public popularity and name recognition of Liberal candidate Norm Anderson, and a poor, gaffe-prone campaign by its own candidate, Karen Phelps. Phelps had unsuccessfully challenged then-incumbent Zack Smith for SDP preselection at the 2002 election in Leightonfield, and subsequently contested the seat as an independent candidate. The upset victory gave the Liberals significant electoral momentum, and conversely the loss is widely reckoned as the beginning of the end for SDP leader Jason Huynh, who led the party to defeat at the 2006 election 14 months later.