Plibersek to hold Sydney, Labor election victory ‘way too early to tell’
Image: Tanya Plibersek (pictured second from right) has been called the winner of Sydney. Photo: Facebook.
By MARCUS HAAR
Sydney looks set to be retained by Tanya Plibersek, who at the time of publishing, has received over 52 per cent of first preference votes.
Holding Sydney wouldn’t come as a surprise, as Plibersek has held the seat since 1998 and is a senior member of the Labor Party, having been the Deputy Leader of the Opposition under Bill Shorten and held shadow ministries in education and women.
While speaking to the ABC, Plibersek said the party was “hopeful [of victory] but it is way too early to tell”.
“If you were believing the polling, you would say we had a good chance, but we were very much misled by the polling last time, so I don’t think anyone is really accepting what the polls tell us just yet.”
The election has also seen a lot of attention drawn to Independents and minor parties like Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and the United Australia Party. Plibersek said that this was “a real sign that voters haven’t felt listened to and heard for a while”.
“It is up to, I think, major parties to show that we are listening and we are responding to the issues that voters keep raising with us. I think the really interesting thing about the teal independents is that they are a very natural liberal voter who feels like they don’t have a home in the Liberal Party anymore. So I think the rise of minor parties is an opportunity and, I suppose, a call for major parties to have a look at what we’re not getting right.”
As of 9:20pm, over 22 per cent of votes have been counted, with Plibersek recording 52.6 per cent of first preference votes, Greens candidate Chetan Sahai on 26.1 per cent, and Liberal Alexander Andruska on 15.5 per cent.
The first preference breakdown of votes is as follows:
Tanya Plibersek (ALP) – 52.6 per cent
Chetan Sahai (Greens) – 26.1 per cent
Alexander Andruska (Liberal) – 15.5 per cent
Ryan McAlister (UAP) – 1.9 per cent
Ben Ferguson (ON) – 1.7 per cent
Andrew Chuter (Socialist Alliance) – 1.6 per cent
Wen Zhou (CEC) – 0.6 per cent
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