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Australia's Labor party poised to topple ruling conservatives
Initial vote counts showed Prime Minister Scott Morrison's conservative coalition and the Labor opposition losing ground to smaller parties like the environment-focused Greens and climate-focussed independents.
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Opposition Labor Party leader Anthony Albanese (R) is greeted by a supporter as his partner Jodie Haydon (L) looks on during Australia's general election at a polling station in the suburb of Marrickville in Sydney on May 21, 2022. (AFP/Wendel Teodoro)
T
he Australian Labor party will topple the ruling conservatives at a national election although it may have to form a minority government, the Australian Broadcasting Corp said on Saturday.
Initial vote counts showed Prime Minister Scott Morrison's conservative coalition and the Labor opposition losing ground to smaller parties like the environment-focused Greens and climate-focussed independents.
Neither of the major parties appeared certain to win the minimum 76 seats required for a majority in the 151-seat parliament, but Labor appeared on track to win more than 70 seats, the ABC said.
"Labor is 72 and needs 76 seats to govern. There are 11 members of the crossbench, most of whom support action on climate change," said ABC election analyst Antony Green in a live broadcast.
"If Labor falls short and it wants to form government, it can talk to the Greens or it can talk to the crossbench."
Cable television station Sky News ran a chyron which said: "Labor tracking towards election victory".
In several affluent Liberal-held seats, so-called "teal independents" campaigning for action on climate change after some of the worst floods and fires to hit Australia, looked likely to win.
Three volunteers working for teal independent Monique Ryan, who is running against Treasurer Josh Frydenberg in the long-held Liberal seat of Kooyong in Melbourne, said they joined Ryan's campaign because they are concerned about the climate for the sake of their children and grandchildren.
"For me, it's like this election actually feels hopeful," Charlotte Forwood, a working mother of three adult children, told Reuters.
With 82 percent of polling booths counted, Ryan was projected to win 53 percent of the two-party preferred vote.
Early returns suggested the Greens had also made ground, especially in some urban centres, while billionaire Clive Palmer's United Australia Party and Pauline Hanson's right-wing One Nation also looked to have gained votes at the expense of both major parties.
Greens leader Adam Bandt, who retained his inner city Melbourne seat, said climate was a major issue for voters.
"There was an attempt from Labor and Liberal to bury it, and we were very clear about the need to tackle climate by tackling coal and gas."
Morrison and Albanese earlier cast their votes in Sydney after making whistle-stop tours across marginal seats in the final two days of a campaign dominated by rising living costs, climate change and integrity.
As Labor focussed on spiking inflation and sluggish wage growth, Morrison made the country's lowest unemployment in almost half a century the centrepiece of his campaign's final hours.
In the outgoing parliament, the Liberal-National coalition held 76 of the 151 lower house seats, while Labor held 68, with seven minor party and independent members.
