James Tully

Who was James Tully?

James Thomas Tully was an Australian politician. Born in Grafton, New South Wales, he was educated at state schools before becoming a farmer and teacher in Tullamore. In 1919, he unsuccessfully contested the federal seat of New England for the Australian Labor Party. He moved to Sydney in 1922, where he continued to teach. In 1928, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Labor member for Barton, defeating incumbent Nationalist Thomas Ley. He retained the seat until 1931, when he was challenged by both the United Australia Party's Albert Lane and Lang Labor's John Eldridge, the member for Martin. Lane won the seat, making it the only time in Australian history that two sitting members have been simultaneously defeated for the same seat.