{"slug": "robert-menzies", "label": "Robert Menzies", "wikipedia": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Menzies", "wikidata": "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q214438", "qid": "Q214438", "description": "Australian politician, 12th Prime Minister of Australia (1894-1978)", "entries": 11, "years": 11, "span": [1939, 1964], "span_label": ["1939 CE", "1964 CE"], "topics": [{"title": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "count": 9}, {"title": "Technology & Infrastructure", "count": 1}, {"title": "Deaths", "count": 1}], "related": [{"slug": "national-party-of-australia", "label": "National Party of Australia", "shared": 11}, {"slug": "australian-labor-party", "label": "Australian Labor Party", "shared": 9}, {"slug": "coalition-australia", "label": "Coalition (Australia)", "shared": 8}, {"slug": "liberal-party-of-australia", "label": "Liberal Party of Australia", "shared": 8}, {"slug": "prime-minister-of-australia", "label": "Prime Minister of Australia", "shared": 6}], "items": [{"year": 1939, "year_label": "1939 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "April 18", "text": "April 18 – Robert Menzies is elected leader of the United Australia Party, and consequently becomes the 12th Prime Minister of Australia, defeating former Prime Minister Billy Hughes. However, he will not be sworn in until April 26, because of the refusal of Earle Page and his Country Party to serve under him.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1372426050#April", "title": "1939", "revid": 1372426050, "section": "Events › April"}}, {"year": 1940, "year_label": "1940 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "September 21", "text": "September 21 – 1940 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' UAP/Country Coalition Government is re-elected as a minority government, narrowly defeating the Labor Party led by John Curtin. It is the last federal election to result in a minority government until 2010.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1368818987#September", "title": "1940", "revid": 1368818987, "section": "Events › September"}}, {"year": 1941, "year_label": "1941 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "August 29", "text": "August 29 – Robert Menzies resigns as Prime Minister of Australia, after losing the support of his party. He will not return to the Prime Ministership until 1949. Arthur Fadden, leader of the Country Party, consequently becomes Prime Minister, while former Prime Minister Billy Hughes replaces Menzies as UAP leader.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1372706275#August", "title": "1941", "revid": 1372706275, "section": "Events › August"}}, {"year": 1949, "year_label": "1949 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "December 10", "text": "December 10 – 1949 Australian federal election: The Liberal/Country Coalition led by Robert Menzies defeats the Labor government, led by Prime Minister Ben Chifley. Menzies is sworn in on December 19, his second stint as prime minister; he will hold the office for over 16 years until his retirement in 1966 and Labor will not win office again until 1972, under Gough Whitlam.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1370167995#December", "title": "1949", "revid": 1370167995, "section": "Events › December"}}, {"year": 1953, "year_label": "1953 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "May 9", "text": "May 9 – Australian Senate election, 1953: The Liberal/Country Coalition Government, led by Prime Minister Robert Menzies, holds their Senate majority, despite gains made by the Labor Party, led by H. V. Evatt. This is the first occasion where a Senate election is held without an accompanying House of Representatives election.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1371310369#May", "title": "1953", "revid": 1371310369, "section": "Events › May"}}, {"year": 1954, "year_label": "1954 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "May 29", "text": "May 29 – 1954 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' Liberal/Country Coalition Government is re-elected with a decreased majority, defeating the Labor Party led by H.V. Evatt. The election has come shortly after the Petrov Affair, arguably helping the Government survive what was initially predicted to be a defeat.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1369212684#May", "title": "1954", "revid": 1369212684, "section": "Events › May"}}, {"year": 1955, "year_label": "1955 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "December 10", "text": "December 10 – 1955 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' Liberal/Country Coalition Government is re-elected with a substantially increased majority, defeating the Labor Party led by H. V. Evatt. This election comes in the immediate aftermath of the devastating split in the Labor Party, which leads to the formation of the Democratic Labor Party. The DLP will preference against Labor, and keep the Coalition in office until 1972.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1371173508#December", "title": "1955", "revid": 1371173508, "section": "Events › December"}}, {"year": 1958, "year_label": "1958 CE", "section": "Technology & Infrastructure", "date": "November 22", "text": "November 22 – 1958 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' Liberal/Country Coalition Government is re-elected with a slightly increased majority, defeating the Labor Party led by H.V. Evatt. This is the first election where television is used as a medium for communicating with voters. Evatt will eventually resign as Labor leader and will be replaced by his deputy Arthur Calwell.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1371827125#November", "title": "1958", "revid": 1371827125, "section": "Events › November"}}, {"year": 1961, "year_label": "1961 CE", "section": "Deaths", "date": "December 9", "text": "December 9 – 1961 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' Liberal/Country Coalition Government is re-elected with a one-seat majority, narrowly defeating the Labor Party led by Arthur Calwell. One of the closest election results in Australian history, such a result will not be replicated again until 2016. Notably, former Prime Minister Earle Page loses his seat, although he dies a few days later, never knowing the result.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1372676854#December", "title": "1961", "revid": 1372676854, "section": "Events › December"}}, {"year": 1963, "year_label": "1963 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "November 30", "text": "November 30 – 1963 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies' Liberal/Country Coalition Government is re-elected with an increased majority to an unprecedented eighth term in office, defeating the Labor Party led by Arthur Calwell. (This would be the final lower house election won by Menzies, who would retire from office during the term as the longest-serving Prime Minister in Australian history; he would be replaced by Harold Holt.)", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1370539540#November", "title": "1963", "revid": 1370539540, "section": "Events › November"}}, {"year": 1964, "year_label": "1964 CE", "section": "Geopolitics & Diplomacy", "date": "December 5", "text": "December 5 – Australian Senate election, 1964: The Liberal/Country Coalition Government led by Prime Minister Robert Menzies hold their status quo, while the Labor Party led by Arthur Calwell lose one seat to the Democratic Labor Party, who hold the balance of power in the Senate alongside independent Reg Turnbull.", "cite": {"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1371069587#December", "title": "1964", "revid": 1371069587, "section": "Events › December"}}]}