Career
Dunne was first elected at the 2001 ACT general election, defeating prominent sitting member and fellow Liberal, Harold Hird, by just 55 votes, after distribution of preferences. Following the announcement of the election result in 2001, Hird sought a recount of the votes in the electorate of Ginninderra. Hird’s request for a recount was rejected by both the Electoral Commissioner and, on appeal, the full ACT Electoral Commission.
The Commission was satisfied that the level of accuracy was so high that a recount in any form could not have improved on the accuracy of the original count, and that there was no probability that the original count had indicated that the wrong candidates had been elected, given the margins between the winning and losing candidates.
Prior to entering the Assembly, Dunne served on the staff of the then Chief Minister of the ACT, Gary Humphries. Dunne presently holds the position of Speaker of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly.
