George Thomas Gahan

Cr. George Tomas Gahan JP (21 July 191224 June 1980) was an Australian politician and Victorian amateur boxer. He was born in Inglewood, Victoria to Benjamin Edward Gahan and Emma Gahan née Walker. The Gahan family later moved to the Melbourne suburb of Prahran where George became a building contractor.

At a young age George began training as an amateur boxer. In his mid 30s, Gahan attempted to join the Australian Army and defend his country in World War II. Despite being rejected by army due to a duodenal ulcer, Gahan applied a second time, only be to turned away again.

From 1957 to 1959, George Gahan was the president of the Prahran-South Yarra branch of the Helping Hand League of Victoria; now known as Inclusion Melbourne.

Political career City of Prahran Councillor 1958–1973 Mayor 1965/66 1970/71

Determined to fight for a seat on the City of Prahran council to improve its service to the people of the area, George Gahan became the Labor Party candidate for the South Yarra Ward in 1954. For fifteen years Cr. George Gahan represented South Yarra on the Prahran City council. Gahan was elected mayor of Prahran twice, in 1965 and 1970. The Australian Labor Party split of 1955 had triggered events that caused a state election in May that year. Neither the anti-communist 'Barry Labor' or the John Cain led Labor Party ran candidates in Toorak. Gahan came in second to the sitting Liberal and Country Party member Horace Petty, and beat the Victorian Liberal Party candidate Geoffrey Kiddle.

From Results of the Victorian state election, 1955 (Legislative Assembly L-Z)

1961 Labor Candidate for Prahran George Gahan was elected by the Labor Party to be their candidate for the 1961 Victorian Legislative Assembly seat of Prahran. Prahran had been held by the Liberal Party and Australian Cricket champion and Sam Loxton since 1955. On May Day 1961 George Gahan declared: "The hour is right for a dramatic rise of the Labor Party ready and willing to work for a new deal for workers".

Cr. Gahan campaigned in Prahran against the conservative Victorian government of Sir Henry Bolte and their record on housing and unemployment. Despite winning the popular vote, George lost the election due to the preferential voting method used in Victorian state elections. The Liberal Party was aided by preferences from the Democratic Labor Party (DLP), which had broken away from the Labor Party during the 1950s claiming that the root organisation was too soft towards communism; fears of left-wing influence was causing great concern in Australian society at the time.

After DLP preferences were counted the Liberal Party's Sam Loxton won with a reduced two party preferred vote of 52.71%.

From Results of the Victorian state election, 1961 (Legislative Assembly L-Z)

Election Scandals

As the Cold War dragged on, the Australian Leftwing remained deeply divided and the split within the Australian Labor Party continued to grow. Labor Party candidates were not only being challenged by the conservative Liberal Party, but were facing a major challenge from their former comrades who had split and joined the increasingly powerful Democratic Labor Party. This provided fertile ground for a boisterous and scandalous 1961 Victorian State election campaign.

Several days before the 1961 Victorian election, the Victorian Premier Henry Bolte gave an address at a Liberal Party election forum being held in the Prahran Town Hall on Chapel Street. Just before the meeting at Prahran Town Hall opened, a Labor party 'street meeting' was held near the town hall. Chris Gahan was elected to Prahran City council again in 1966–1972 and in 1979–1994. He was elected the Mayor of Stonnington in 1998.

Namesakes

George Gahan Centre, Osbourne Street, South Yarra, Victoria. Gahan Court, Toorak, Victoria.