In a sweeping triumph, the Labor Party secured a historic victory, while Pauline Hanson’s party tapped into public dissatisfaction with the political status quo, marking its strongest performance in Australia in decades and severely impacting the Liberal party’s standing.
“This marks the dawn of a new era for the people of South Australia and all Australians,” declared the One Nation leader.
“This sends a powerful signal. I am not stopping with South Australia; my sights are set on the seat of Farrer in the upcoming New South Wales by-election, and then I’ll turn my attention to Victoria,” she continued.
In South Australia’s lower house, the Labor Party is set to expand its majority significantly, securing at least 32 seats, with the potential to claim up to 35.
The Liberal Party faces a challenging situation, holding onto just four seats with only a slight chance of retaining three more.
One Nation’s David Payton, who serves as the deputy mayor of Adelaide Plains Council, captured the seat of Ngadjuri. This win marks the party’s first lower house seat obtained through an election outside Queensland.
The party is on track for at least two seats in the lower house and at least another in the upper house, where SA One Nation leader Cory Bernardi is its lead candidate.
The votes are still being counted and the results won’t be known for days in some elections.
“We can and should wave our flag with pride knowing that Aussie patriotism sometimes means sitting with a stranger and sharing a cuppa or a frothy,” he said.
While most of the state went to the polls supporting Labor, more than one in five South Australians backed One Nation, which overtook the Liberals as the second most popular in the state.
One Nation leads the Liberal Party in two-thirds of lower house seats and outside of Adelaide, they lead all parties in total vote, figures that will likely scare the major parties in other states and in Canberra.
“I think the lesson from that not just in South Australia but federally is that people are angry,” former opposition leader David Littleproud said.
As the results became clear, the Liberals were baying for blood, not blaming current leader Ashton Hurn but demanding an apology from former leader David Speirs.
