| Macnamara AustralianHouse of RepresentativesDivision | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  Interactive map of electorate boundaries from the2025 federal election | |||||||||||||||
| Created | 2019 | ||||||||||||||
| MP | Josh Burns | ||||||||||||||
| Party | Labor | ||||||||||||||
| Namesake | Dame Jean Macnamara | ||||||||||||||
| Electors | 114,610 (2025) | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 38 km2 (14.7 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Demographic | Inner metropolitan | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 37°51′36″S144°58′48″E / 37.86000°S 144.98000°E /-37.86000; 144.98000 | ||||||||||||||
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TheDivision of Macnamara is anAustralian Electoral Division in the state ofVictoria, which was contested for the first time at the2019 federal election. The division is named in honour ofDame Jean Macnamara, a doctor andmedical researcher who specialised in thepolio virus and was involved in children's health initiatives.
The current member isJosh Burns of theAustralian Labor Party, who has represented the division since the2019 Australian federal election.
Since 1984, federal electoral division boundaries in Australia have been determined at redistributions by a redistribution committee appointed by theAustralian Electoral Commission. Redistributions occur for the boundaries of divisions in a particular state, and they occur every seven years, or sooner if a state's representation entitlement changes or when divisions of a state are malapportioned.[1]
The Division of Macnamara was created in 2018 after theAustralian Electoral Commission oversaw a mandatoryredistribution ofdivisions in Victoria.[2] Macnamara covers most of what was previously theDivision of Melbourne Ports, which it replaced in the redistribution.[3] The division is located in Melbourne's south around the eastern shores ofPort Phillip Bay and takes in the suburbs ofPort Melbourne,Albert Park,Balaclava,Caulfield,Elwood,Middle Park,Ripponlea,Southbank,South Melbourne andSt Kilda, as well as parts ofGlen Huntly andElsternwick.[4] It also includes the suburb ofWindsor, which had previously been located in the neighbouring division ofHiggins.[3]
The seat was notionally held by theLabor Party on a 1.3% margin over theLiberal Party.[3] Its predecessor, Melbourne Ports, had been held by Labor without interruption since 1906, and for over 80 years had been one of Labor's safest seats. However, Labor's hold on the seat became increasingly tenuous after a 1990 redistribution added some wealthier territory around Caulfield. Further analysis identified that the margin between the Labor Party and theGreens had narrowed to less than 0.3% as a result of recent boundary adjustments.[5]
The last member for Melbourne Ports,Michael Danby, opted not to contest the election for the new Macnamara.
The 2022 election in Macnamara was a close race between Labor's new candidateJosh Burns and the Greens' candidateSteph Hodgins-May. After several days of counting, Josh Burns narrowly won the seat, securing Labor a majority in the House of Representatives.
Macnamara is undergoing rapidinner-citygentrification and contains high-densityhousing developments. It is notable for its highJewish population;[6] at the time of the2025 Australian federal election, 10% of Macnamara's population was Jewish, making it the second-largest Jewish electorate in Australia.[7] The incumbentMP,Josh Burns, is himself the grandson ofJewish migrants who left Europe and settled in Melbourne in search of a safe place to raise their families.[6]
| Image | Member | Party | Term | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Josh Burns (1987–) | Labor | 18 May 2019 – present | Incumbent | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | Josh Burns | 36,228 | 36.11 | +4.45 | |
| Liberal | Benson Saulo | 32,606 | 32.50 | +3.38 | |
| Greens | Sonya Semmens | 25,561 | 25.47 | −4.19 | |
| One Nation | Sean Rubin | 2,803 | 2.79 | +1.40 | |
| Independent | JB Myers | 1,841 | 1.83 | −0.06 | |
| Libertarian | Michael Abelman | 1,299 | 1.29 | −0.83 | |
| Total formal votes | 100,338 | 97.81 | +1.23 | ||
| Informal votes | 2,246 | 2.19 | −1.23 | ||
| Turnout | 102,584 | 89.53 | +3.12 | ||
| Two-party-preferred result | |||||
| Labor | Josh Burns | 62,004 | 61.80 | −0.37 | |
| Liberal | Benson Saulo | 38,334 | 38.20 | +0.37 | |
| Laborhold | Swing | −0.37 | |||