Country Liberals victorious in Northern Territory election
The CLP inflicted a clear and decisive defeat on Labor and solid majority for Lia Finocchiaro’s party
Territorians were clearly looking for change and with the slogan of the future government being "The CLP Team will rebuild the Territory", the people made their choice.
The Northern Territory will now be governed by the Country Liberal Party (CLP) after a significant swing against the incumbent Labor party. According to ABC election analyst Antony Green, the current government has been defeated. He stated, "It appears to be a substantial defeat and it seems likely that the CLP will secure a majority, possibly a significant one."
Former chief minister and Labor MP Natasha Fyles acknowledged the disappointment, but also noted that politicians are always prepared for such outcomes. As the afternoon heat wore on, the number of voters at polling booths in the Northern Territory (NT) decreased. With 6.6% of the votes counted, the CLP had a swing of 13.8% on a two-party preferred basis.
In the Fannie Bay constituency, the Greens candidate Suki Dorras-Walker was initially leading the CLP in early voting. More than 85,000 Territorians had cast their votes before election day, causing a slowdown in polling activities. NT chief minister Eva Lawler had expressed some concerns about her marginal seat of Drysdale, and also mentioned that the slow polling may be indicative of a change in voting patterns. She stated, "It has been fairly steady, but quieter than expected. I believe that voting behaviour has shifted, with more people choosing to pre-poll or vote at shopping centres rather than at the school booths."
Opposition leader Lia Finocchiaro spent most of the hot day at a polling booth on the border of their Palmerston-based electorates. Ms Finocchiaro noted that many voters had kept their voting preferences secret, and that there was a high turnout of early voters. She added, "People seem very determined, and we are hoping that they will see the importance of voting until 6pm."
Finocchiaro appears to be the likely winner after early voting showed a strong swing towards the CLP. Lawler mentioned that it had been a tough and grueling journey since becoming the leader of Labor in January. She stated, "I'm confident that all of my candidates will go to bed tonight knowing that they gave it their all." The main issues that were highlighted during the election campaign were the environment, crime, and cost of living.
Voting began slowly in the Fannie Bay constituency in northern Darwin, but picked up as market-goers collected breakfast laksas on Saturday and cast their ballots. A lower number of voters chose to wait until election day to vote, with a higher number opting for early voting. Territory electorates typically have around 6,000 voters, making the margins in the 25 seats extremely close.
The NT electoral commissioner, Kirsten Kelly, reported that 61,000 people had voted early across the territory. She stated, "This is about 1,000 more votes than in 2020, showing that early voting is a popular choice for us."
The participation rate for this election had decreased from 75% in 2020 to 65%, however, there are more people on the electoral roll this year. Kelly added, "Although there are fewer voters, the overall number of people on the electoral roll has increased."
