The humiliating phone call Liberal leader was forced to make after bitter battle for nation’s capital
- Elizabeth Lee admits defeat despite an early turn in her favor
- Andrew Barr’s Labor returned for a historic seventh term in the ACT
The Liberals have conceded defeat in the ACT despite earlier polls suggesting it may finally be coming to an end 23 years of Labor dominance in the nation’s capital.
With just over half the votes counted early Saturday evening, the Liberals outpaced the incumbent Labor party in a surprise show of support.
But as the evening and vote counting progressed, it soon became clear that Labor would likely survive a blow to the party and be returned for a seventh term.
And by 9:30 p.m. it was all over, with Liberal Leader Elizabeth Lee conceding defeat, telling her colleagues they knew they had a “pretty steep uphill battle to climb.”
“Today the people of the Australian Capital Territory have spoken. They voted for change, but maybe not enough to get us there,” she said.
Ms Lee congratulated Labor and its leader Andrew Barr, saying: ‘any way you slice it, 27 years… is an incredible achievement’.
She said she thought the result showed the area had missed a chance for a fresh start after almost three decades under the same party, but said she had made Labor work.
ACT Liberals leader Elizabeth Lee is proud of her colleagues’ efforts despite conceding defeat in her battle to end Labour’s long rule in the ACT on Saturday.
Early indications showed the Liberals were doing well in the polls, but by 9:30 p.m. it was all over
‘I really believe we are the better team. And I really think we… have what it takes to deliver the renewal of the ACT that is desperately needed,” she said.
“I think we can be proud of our efforts because we really brought it to Labor and closed the gap between the Labor and Liberal vote.”
Labor and Liberal candidates had been fighting to increase their share of the 25 seats in the Legislative Assembly.
Looking at the votes already counted, political experts predicted that ten seats were likely to go to the Liberals, ten to Labour, three to the Greens and two to the independents.
Andrew Barr, the Prime Minister of the Australian Capital Territory, will continue to lead the territory
Ms Lee conceded defeat after calling incumbent ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr, who has led the territory for the past decade.
He has consolidated his position as the country’s longest-serving state or territory leader.
Both Mr Barr and Ms Lee were re-elected alongside ACT Greens’ Shane Rattenbury in Canberra’s central electorate of Kurrajong, shortly after vote counting began on Saturday evening.