When Henry Parkes won the NSW Legislative Assembly seat of St Leonards in 1885, Quirk worked in his office.
Quirk then stood for state office in 1901 when the local member for Warringah, Dugald Thomson, resigned so that he could stand for the seat of North Sydney in the new Federal Parliament.
Elected as an Independent,[5] Quirk was aligned with the government of the day led by Sir John See and Thomas Waddell.
He served on a parliamentary committee that resulted in an act that allowed the extension of a railway to the Portland Cement Works.
[7] The Sydney Morning Herald in particular noted with interest his change of party allegiance since leaving parliament: "Mr. Quirk's debut as a pledged [Labor] caucus candidate is, of course, something new for the electors to meditate upon.