Tasmanians head to the polls on Saturday in an election that was called more than a year early. After a largely uninspiring campaign, here’s your guide to state election.
Tasmanian Labor leader Rebecca White.
Rob Blackers/AAP
Polls aren’t favouring state Labor parties. Based on the latest figures, Labor would struggle to form government in Tasmania, while support for the party in Queensland has dipped.
Under Peter Gutwein, the Liberals have won a record third term, but without the huge swings to incumbent governments that have been seen in other states.
Both Liberal and Labor have had shaky campaigns, but the premier’s gamble that an early poll to capitalise on COVID management is the ticket to another term may well pay off.
The Tasmanian election result was an emphatic win for Will Hodgman, but he lost a fair bit of skin along the way.
AAP/Julian Smith
Pokies, housing, hospitals and gun laws might have been the specific issues that dominated the campaign, but the decisive factor was Tasmanians’ enduring apprehension about minority government.
The Hodgman government has been returned for a second term.
AAP/Julian Smith
Both major parties have declared they will not form minority government in Tasmania – talk that should be taken seriously, but not literally.
If the Greens hold the sole balance of power after the Tasmanian election, the next parliamentary term could be a messy business for Labor’s Rebecca White or the Liberals’ Will Hodgman.
AAP/The Conversation
The polls are leaning towards the Liberals holding power in Tasmania, but the unpopularity of the federal Coalition government could help Labor get over the line.