South Australian Labor Senator Don Farrell has conceded it would take a “minor miracle” for him to be re-elected after a big swing against the ALP in the state’s Senate vote.
Independent Senator Nick Xenophon’s group has outpolled Labor with more than 25 per cent of the vote, almost certainly ending Senator Farrell’s hopes of a second term.
With more than 70 per cent of the ballots counted, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young looks set to retain her spot.
Family First candidate Bob Day, a former Liberal, could also claim a seat alongside Liberals Cory Bernardi and Simon Birmingham and Labor’s Penny Wong.
Senator Farrell on the Labor ticket last October after pressure for Senator Wong to take that position.
The party powerbroker says it was the right decision at the time and he has no regrets, even though it will likely cost him his Senate spot.
“I’m a person who likes to look forward rather than back. We’ve had to make some tough decisions over this period of time,” he said.
“The party has been very divided in the past. We need to reunite now, we need to reunite behind a new leader and we have to put the divisions of the past behind us.
“We have to draw a line under it and we have to form a credible opposition to take on Tony Abbott. It would take a minor miracle I think to get me back there.”
Senator Wong said she had been surprised by the Labor Party’s performance in the Senate.
“I haven’t given up hope. It’s certainly very disappointing and unexpected that we’re in the position we’re in but I haven’t given up hope,” she said.
In the lower house, Matt Williams was a Liberal hero as the only challenger to take a seat off Labor in South Australia.
“I’m very pleased to be part of Tony Abbott’s new team in Canberra,” he said.
He is yet to formally claim his victory and his opponent in Hindmarsh Labor’s Steve Georganas is not formally conceding, but sounds resigned to the outcome.
“This is politics, you’re up one day, you’re down the next,” he said.
Holden a priority
Senator Xenophon celebrated the result by thanking supporters in Rundle Mall on Sunday.
He said he planned to contact Prime Minister-elect Tony Abbott to discuss Holden’s manufacturing future in northern Adelaide.
“I understand that an enormous vote like this brings with it enormous responsibility and I can’t let South Australians down and that’s why the first two priorities have to be Holden and water and a whole range of other issues where South Australia isn’t getting a fair deal,” he said.
Mr Abbott said during the election campaign he would not run after Holden “waving a blank cheque”.
Senator Xenophon said his running mate Stirling Griff looked likely to narrowly miss out on a Senate seat and he took aim at the major parties for their preference deals.
“It’s bizarre and some would say spiteful that the Labor Party have preferenced the Liberal Party ahead of my running mate who’s very much from the political centre. The Labor Party preferenced Family First from the right of centre ahead of my running mate as well,” he said.
Political commentator Clem Macintyre said the election of only one Labor Senator in South Australia would be likely to spark fighting behind closed doors.
“I think [it] will open up a number of wounds inside the Labor Party and there’ll be a bit of point scoring and some scores to settle there,” he said.
Professor Macintyre said the level of support for Senator Xenophon was an unprecedented result for an independent candidate.
“I can’t think of any case in the country where an independent has got that level of support,” he said.
“Brian Harradine was a successful senator in Tasmania for a long time but never received votes of 25 per cent.”
Senator Xenophon’s decision to preference the major parties ahead of Senator Hanson-Young prompted a three-week public spat between the pair.
But Senator Hanson-Young was now confident she would retain her seat in Parliament.
“It’s very much on a knife edge. I’ve always said that this race was going to be a tough one,” she said.
“The Greens are in the race and we’re going to have our fingers crossed and our toes crossed and hope that the numbers fall where they need to.”
Senator Hanson-Young’s celebrations were bittersweet, as her campaign manager died days before the poll.
“We loved him dearly and he deserves the win that we are going to get here in South Australia because the numbers are looking good,” she said.
State poll next March
Eyes are now turning to the next big political contest in South Australia.
“Tony Abbott’s done it at the federal level, now is the great opportunity for the state team to replicate this win in March next year,” said Opposition Leader Steven Marshall.
But Labor frontbencher Tom Koutsantonis countered: “The South Australian Liberals have done exceptionally poorly while their interstate cousins have done exceptionally well. Who’s to blame?”
The same 4.5 per cent swing to the Liberals in a state poll would see Jay Weatherill’s Labor government swept from office with a loss of nine seats.
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