Yan Yean was created for the 1992 election and has always been held by Labor, although usually marginally. The seat became notionally Liberal after the Craigieburn end of the electorate was removed due to population growth in a redistribution prior to the 2002 election, leading to Andre Haermeyer's decision to contest Kororoit instead. Nevertheless, Labor's Danielle Green easily won the seat, winning with a margin of 9.5% over her Liberal opponent, future party leader Matthew Guy.
Green held on to the seat in 2006 and 2010, however with swings against her. After another redistribution ahead of the 2014 election made the seat notionally Liberal again, Green managed a swing to her this time and was reelected. In 2018, she was reelected to a fifth term in parliament with a 13-point swing in her favor on the 2PP. She retired at the 2022 election however, and Labor kept her seat with the election of Lauren Kathage, a community worker. The 2018 swing to Labor was in large part erased in 2022.