The seat was first created in 1950, and consistently returned members for the Liberal Party until its abolition in 1977.

[1] It was recreated in 1992 as part of the electoral reforms that ended the malapportionment of the Bjelke-Petersen era.

Although it was created as a notionally Labor seat, it was located in ancestrally Liberal territory.

Santoro was re-elected in 1996 and 1998, but was defeated in a shock result in 2001 by actress and Labor candidate Liddy Clark.

A redistribution in 2008 made Clayfield notionally Labor by 0.2%, but the Liberal National Party achieved a swing strong enough for Nicholls to retain his seat in the 2009 election.