Labor had returned to government in 1976 after 11 years in opposition, following a narrow one seat victory at the 1976 election. 85% of voters approved a referendum in June 1978 to introduce direct elections for the Legislative Council. The election on 7 October 1978 was a landslide victory for Labor, popularly known as the "Wranslide", with a swing to Labor of 9.1%, gaining 13 seats. The first election for the Legislative Council in 127 years saw Labor win nine of the 15 available seats, giving it a majority of four seats in the council.
Composition of ministry
The composition of the ministry was announced by Premier Wran and sworn in on 19 October 1978. Former Premier and minister, Jack Renshaw, announced his decision to retire from politics in January 1980, with Wran assuming his portfolio of Treasurer pending a reconfiguration of the ministry on 29 February 1980 and the Third Wran ministry was formed.[5]