Former PM Says Bid to Rename Electorate After Aboriginal Leader ‘Change by Stealth’

The Liberals and Labor oppose the proposed change to rename the Tasmanian electorate to ‘Tongerlongeter.’

Australia's former Prime Minister Tony Abbott sits on stage during a discussion with Britain's main opposition Conservative Party Shadow Foreign Secretary Priti Patel and journalist Trevor Phillips (unseen) on stage for a discussion on the third day of the annual Conservative Party conference in Manchester, north-west England, on Oct. 7, 2025. Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott has criticised a proposal to rename the federal electorate of Franklin after Aboriginal leader Tongerlongeter, saying the change was an example of “change-by-stealth.”

The proposal, which is also opposed by the Labor and Liberal parties, forms part of Tasmania’s federal electoral redistribution.

It would see the electorate of Franklin renamed in honour of the Aboriginal leader who led the resistance against British colonial expansion during Australia’s Black War, which occurred between 1823 to 1830.

The electorate is currently named after Sir John Franklin, the former Lieutenant-Governor of Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania) and a British polar explorer.

The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) said it was responding to several submissions advocating for a switch, saying there were “strong reasons to consider an alternative name.”

“Tongerlongeter is recognised by historians as one of the most significant Aboriginal leaders in Tasmania during the early period of British colonisation,” the AEC wrote.

“Historians regard the scale and effectiveness of Aboriginal resistance under leaders such as Tongerlongeter as a significant factor in major colonial government responses, including the declaration of martial law in 1828 and the Black Line campaign in 1830.”

The proposal was released on July 15, with the AEC allowing for objections or alternative names to be submitted by July 21.

Former Liberal Prime Minister Abbott described the move as “officialdom’s rush to make key changes without meaningful public input.”

“The public has been given scarcely five working days to make submissions,” he said in a post on X.

“As for lionising Tongerlongeter, what about erecting a statue to him, with an explanation of the tragedy that was inevitable in the clash of two then-very-different and mutually misunderstood cultures, perhaps to stand alongside the restored statue of Premier William Crowther, as a reminder of our shared flawed humanity,” Abbott wrote on his website.

“Better that than posthumously recruiting him into the culture wars that are dividing and demoralising our nation.”

Major Parties Unite in Opposition

Both the Liberal Party and the Australian Labor Party lodged submissions opposing the proposed renaming.

“We recommend retaining all current electorate names on continuity and recognition grounds,” the centre-right Liberals argued (pdf) in their submission, saying it would “minimise voter confusion.”

Labor submitted an objection (pdf) saying there was not enough justification.

“A name change should not be pursued simply because boundaries have shifted,” the submission said, adding that the decision goes against the provisions laid down by AEC itself.

The electorate’s sitting member, Labor’s Julie Collins, has also opposed the proposal.

“I support the submission that the Labor Party made to the redistribution consultation process, including about a possible name change,” she told AAP.