Voters from Neath, Abermain, Weston and Kurri will be part of the Paterson electorate for the next federal election.
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The Australian Electoral Commission’s redistribution plan has been endorsed and was announced on Thursday.
The redistribution is taking place because Western Australia has been granted an extra seat due to its growing population, resulting in NSW losing a seat.
The current seat of Hunter – held by Labor’s Joel Fitzgibbon since 1996 – will be divided up, and the neighbouring seat of Charlton (to the south-east) will be renamed Hunter in honour of the Federation seat.
Mr Fitzgibbon is attending a conference in the United Kingdom and was unavailable for comment.
But when the AEC announced the proposal in October, Mr Fitzgibbon said he was “keen to remain the Cessnock LGA’s representative in Canberra”.
Just under half of the voters in the existing division of Hunter (including Cessnock, Branxton, Pokolbin, Wollombi and Mulbring, plus Singleton and Muswellbrook) will stay in the proposed new seat of Hunter.
About 40 per cent of Hunter voters – including those from Neath and eastbound – will join Paterson, which is currently held by the Liberals’ Bob Baldwin.
Voters in the northern part of the seat – including those in Aberdeen, Murrurundi and Merriwa – will join Nationals-held New England.
Rylstone and Kandos in the west will become part of the Calare electorate, also held by the Nationals.
About 60 per cent of Charlton voters will be part of the new seat of Hunter, with the rest moved into Newcastle and Shortland. Charlton is currently held by Labor’s Pat Conroy.
From the Hunter River at Greta west to Orient Street south of Valentine Close; south to the New England Highway; south-east to the Cessnock/Maitland LGA boundary; south-east to the Hunter Expressway; south-east to the eastern boundary of the localities of Keinbah, Lovedale, Nulkaba, Cessnock; east to the northern boundary of the localities of Aberdare, Kearsley and Elrington; east to Leggetts Drive; south to White Bridge Road; then generally east to Cessnock/Lake Macquarie LGA boundary; generally east to the Pacific Motorway; south-west to the Newcastle Link Road; generally east to Lake Road; south-west to Reservoir Road; south-east to Lowry Street; south-west to Main Road; south-east to the Main Northern Railway line; generally west to Cockle Creek; south to Lake Macquarie; generally south to the Lake Macquarie/ Wyong LGA boundary; then following the outer boundary of Lake Macquarie, Cessnock, Singleton, Muswellbrook LGAs to the Hunter River.
From the Hunter River at Greta generally east to the Williams River; north to the northern boundary of Raymond Terrace; east to the Pacific Highway; north-east to the southern boundary of the Wallaroo State Forest; east to Morton Road and Cook Drive; north to the northern boundary of the Medowie Conservation Area at Reedy Creek; east to Reedy Creek; generally south-east to themiddle of Port Stephens and the coast; south-west to the Port Stephens/Newcastle LGA boundary; north-west along the northern branch of the Hunter River to the Hexham Bridge; south-west along the Rail Trail to the southern boundary of the locality of Lenaghan; west to the Cessnock/Newcastle LGA boundary; south to the Cessnock/Lake Macquarie LGA boundary; generally west to White Bridge Road and Leggetts Drive; north to the southern boundary of the localities of Elrington, Kearsley and Aberdare; generally north along the eastern boundary of the localities of Cessnock, Nulkaba, Lovedale and Keinbah to the Hunter Expressway; north-west to the Maitland/ Cessnock LGA boundary; north to the New England Highway; north-west to Orient Street; north to just south of Valentine Close; east to the Hunter River.
