Northern Territory General Election, 1977
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| Legislative Assembly election, 1977 | ||||
| Party | Vote % | Seats | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country Liberal | 40.1 | ↓8.8 | 12 | ↓5 |
| Labor | 38.2 | ↑7.8 | 6 | ↑6 |
| Independents | 1 | ↓1 | ||
| Country Liberal win | ||||
A general election was held in the Northern Territory on Saturday August 13, 1977. Though the election was won by the incumbent Country Liberal Party (CLP), the party lost five of its seven executive members, including Majority Leader Goff Letts. The election also marked the emergence of the Australian Labor Party as a parliamentary force: Labor took six seats in the new assembly.
The Progress Party contested the elections, winning 9.76% of the primary vote across the territory, but failed to secure any assembly seats.
The Country Liberals chose Paul Everingham to replace Letts as Majority Leader. Everingham appointed a new Executive, which included future Chief Ministers Marshall Perron and Ian Tuxworth. The following, year, the Territory attained self-government. Everingham became Chief Minister, his Executive became a Ministry with greatly expanded powers.
