Editing Alfred Deakin (section)

==Leader of the Opposition, 1910–1913==
[[File:Deakin leaving Parliament House.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Deakin in January 1913, leaving Parliament House on his final day as Liberal leader]]
After the 1910 election, Deakin had less influence than any previous opposition leader, with the ALP holding clear majorities in both houses. His diaries indicate that he would have preferred to resign and retire from politics, but he was asked to stay on in the absence of an obvious successor.{{sfn|Brett|2017|p=399}} He led the campaign against the Fisher government's [[1911 Australian referendum|proposed constitutional amendments]] in 1911, which would have significantly expanded the powers of the federal government. He spent two months campaigning for the "No" vote, visiting every state except Western Australia which turned out to be the only state to vote "Yes". The result was regarded as a triumph for the opposition.{{sfn|Brett|2017|pp=400–402}}

By 1912, Deakin had "lost all zest for public life and was trudging on until he could retire".{{sfn|Brett|2017|p=409}} He made his final speech to parliament on 18 December 1912 and publicly announced his intention to retire on 8 January 1913, after informing Joseph Cook a day earlier.{{sfn|Brett|2017|p=410}} His last action as leader of the Liberal Party was to oversee the election of his successor, held on 20 January. He supported Cook, who defeated John Forrest by a single vote.{{sfn|Brett|2017|p=412}} Deakin retired from parliament at the [[1913 Australian federal election|1913 federal election]] held in May, which saw Cook and the Liberals form government with a bare one-seat majority in the House.{{sfn|Brett|2017|p=413}}