Eddie Ward

The Honourable Eddie Ward
Minister for Transport
In office 21 September 1943 – 19 December 1949
Prime Minister	John Curtin Frank Forde Ben Chifley
Preceded by	George Lawson
Succeeded by	Howard Beale
Minister for External Territories
In office 21 September 1943 – 19 December 1949
Prime Minister	John Curtin Frank Forde Ben Chifley
Preceded by	James Fraser
Succeeded by	Percy Spender
Minister for Labour and National Service
In office 7 October 1941 – 21 September 1943
Prime Minister	John Curtin
Preceded by	Harold Holt
Succeeded by	Jack Holloway
Father of the House
In office 9 December 1961 – 31 July 1963
Preceded by	Earle Page
Succeeded by	Joe Clark
Member of the Australian Parliament for East Sydney
In office 6 February 1932 – 31 July 1963
Preceded by	John Clasby
Succeeded by	Len Devine
In office 7 March 1931 – 19 December 1931
Preceded by	John West
Succeeded by	John Clasby
Personal details
Born	(1899-03-07)7 March 1899 Darlington, New South Wales, Australia
Died	31 July 1963(1963-07-31) (aged 64) Darlinghurst, New South Wales, Australia
Political party	Labor
Other political affiliations	Lang Labor (1931–36)
Spouse	Edith Bishop ​ (m. 1924)​
Occupation	Unionist

Edward John Ward (7 March 1899 – 31 July 1963) was an Australian politician who represented the Australian Labor Party (ALP) in federal parliament for over 30 years. He was the member for East Sydney for all but six and a half weeks from 1931 until his death in 1963. He served as a minister in the Curtin and Chifley governments from 1941 to 1949, and was also known for his role in the ALP split of 1931.

Ward was born in Sydney and left school at the age of 14; he became involved in the labour movement at a young age. He was elected to the Sydney Municipal Council in 1930, and the following year won Labor preselection for the 1931 East Sydney by-election. He was elected to the House of Representatives, but Prime Minister James Scullin refused him admission to the ALP caucus due to his support for Jack Lang. Ward and six other "Lang Labor" MPs formed a separate parliamentary party and eventually brought down Scullin's government. He lost his seat at the 1931 federal election. However, his successor John Clasby died only a month later and he re-entered parliament at the ensuing by-election, and held the seat until his death.

In 1941, Ward was elected to cabinet by the ALP caucus and appointed Minister for Labour and National Service by Prime Minister John Curtin. He had an uneasy relationship with Curtin, and his claims about the "Brisbane Line" led to a royal commission which found they were unsubstantiated. He received an effective demotion after the 1943 election, becoming Minister for Transport and External Territories. He held those offices until Labor lost power in 1949. Ward stood for the deputy leadership of the ALP on numerous occasions, and also mounted a challenge for the leadership against H. V. Evatt in 1959. He died in office in 1963, having been the longest-serving MP since 1961.