William Russell

William Russell (20 October 1842 – 28 June 1912) was a Scottish-born Australian politician. He was a liberal member of the South Australian Legislative Council from 1895 to 1900 and an Australian Labor Party member of the South Australian House of Assembly (Burra) (1901–1902) and the Australian Senate (1906–1912). He was a member of the South Australian Farmers Union for many years and served a term as vice-president.

Colonial politics Russell was elected to the Legislative Council as a liberal for the North-Eastern District at the 1894 election. He supported women's suffrage, adult suffrage for the House of Assembly and an increased franchise for the Legislative Council.

Federal politics Russell was elected to the Senate for the Labor Party at the 1906 federal election. In June 1912, he was campaigning with Alexander Poynton at Lipson when he began experiencing heart problems; he was taken to a private hospital at Tumby Bay, but died there on 28 June. He was buried at Payneham Cemetery.