Braddon is classified as a rural electorate in the North-West and West of Tasmania. It is home to about 110,000 people and covers approximately 21,369 square kilometres.
The electorate boundary was last gazetted in November 2017 and first proclaimed in 1903. At that time, the electorate was named Darwin.
The electorate name changed to Braddon in 1955 after Sir Edward Braddon, who was Premier of Tasmania from 1894 to 1899 and also served as a Member of the House of Representatives between 1901 and 1904.
Devonport and Burnie are the major population centres within the electorate and are key locations for government services, retail outlets and services supporting agricultural and forestry industries such as vegetable processing, cheese manufacture, sawmilling and woodchipping.
Beef cattle production, dairying, fishing, aquaculture, kelp harvesting and vegetable, poppy and pyrethrum growing are major primary industries.
Mining and associated equipment manufacture and servicing are also prominent in the electorate, particularly on the West Coast.
Braddon plays a major role in the development of Tasmania’s renewable energy industry. It is the nominated location for the cable terminus and converter station for the Marinus Link - a proposed undersea cable to carry electricity between Tasmania and Victoria.
Manufacturing and tourism are major industries in Braddon. It is the gateway to the Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park and has an abundance of other natural attractions.
The electorate is also the base for the University of Tasmania Cradle Coast Campus, the University’s Rural Clinical School and two major hospitals.
Burnie and Devonport are important Tasmanian sea ports. Burnie services container and bulk commodity shipping and cruise ships and the TT-Line’s Spirit of Tasmania passenger and vehicle ferry service operates out of Devonport.
Interstate airports are located at Devonport, Wynyard and Currie on King Island.
