Camden was originally created in 1859, replacing part of
West Camden and named after the town of
Camden or
Camden County, which includes Camden, the
Southern Highlands and the
Illawarra. It elected two members from 1859 to 1889 and three members from 1889 to 1894, when multi-member electorates were abolished. It was abolished in 1920, with the introduction of
proportional representation and absorbed into
Cumberland. It was recreated in 1981. In recent decades it has been a marginal seat, falling to both the and parties on separate occasions. Except in 1984-91 and 1995-2003, Camden in its second incarnation, has been held by the government party. Camden was evident as a bellwether seat at the 1991 election when the ALP lost the seat to the Liberal Party despite the former party making huge gains at that election which was close but not enough for them to win the election. If the ALP had retained Camden in 1991, the party would have been in a strong position to form a minority government when it then won The Entrance by-election in 1992. ==Members for Camden==