Editing Liberal Party of Australia (section)

===Holt government===
{{Main|Holt government}}
[[File:Harold Holt 1965 01.jpg|left|100px|thumb|[[Harold Holt]], Prime Minister 1966–67]]
[[File:CongressBuilding SEATO.jpg|thumb|Prime Minister [[Harold Holt]] (second from left), with [[SEATO]] leaders in [[Manila]], in 1966. The Liberal Party was in power through much of the early Post-War period in which Australia's allegiances, immigration and trade policies shifted away from reliance on the United Kingdom.]]
[[Harold Holt]] replaced the retiring [[Robert Menzies]] in 1966 and the [[Holt government]] went on to win 82 seats to Labor's 41 at the [[1966 Australian federal election|1966 election]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/holt/elections.aspx |title=Elections – Harold Holt – Australia's PMs – Australia's Prime Ministers |publisher=Primeministers.naa.gov.au |access-date=21 June 2012 |archive-date=26 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626020725/http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/holt/elections.aspx |url-status=live}}</ref> Holt remained prime minister until 19 December 1967, when he was declared presumed dead two days after disappearing in rough surf in which he had gone for a swim. His body has never been found.

Holt increased Australian commitment to the growing [[Vietnam War|War in Vietnam]], which met with some public opposition. His government oversaw conversion to [[decimal currency]]. Holt faced Britain's withdrawal from Asia by visiting and hosting many Asian leaders and by expanding ties to the United States, hosting the first visit to Australia by an American president, his friend [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]. Holt's government introduced the ''Migration Act 1966'', which effectively dismantled the [[White Australia Policy]] and increased access to non-European migrants, including refugees fleeing the [[Vietnam War]]. Holt also called the 1967 Referendum which removed the discriminatory clause in the [[Australian Constitution]] which excluded [[Aboriginal Australians]] from being counted in the census – the referendum was one of the few to be overwhelmingly endorsed by the Australian electorate (over 90% voted "Yes"). By the end of 1967, the Liberals' initially popular support for the war in Vietnam was causing increasing public protest.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/holt/in-office.aspx |title=In office – Harold Holt – Australia's PMs – Australia's Prime Ministers |publisher=Primeministers.naa.gov.au |access-date=21 June 2012 |archive-date=15 March 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110315150125/http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/holt/in-office.aspx |url-status=dead}}</ref>