WA Labor’s near-insurmountable polling leads appears primed to translate to a landslide win this evening, with a host of notionally safe Liberal-held seats now ripe for the picking.
That comes as the final Newspoll of this election cycle gave the party 66 per cent of the two-party preferred vote, which would translate to a double-digit swing towards the state government if realised in tonight’s results.
Isolated anecdotes from poll workers in two marginal electorates indicate a surge in enthusiasm for Labor, with a handful of voters telling Business News they had voted for the party in part out of deference to Premier Mark McGowan’s policies to combat COVID-19.
The state-wide swing appears on track to be realised in Mount Lawley, where Simon Millman is seeking a second term after knocking off the incumbent, Michael Sutherland, with a 13 per cent swing after preferences in 2017.
His victory that year owed to a combination of factors, including close to 3,000 preferences from the Greens and spending in his electorate courtesy of the CMFEU and ETU.
City of Stirling councilor Suzanne Migdale, who has benefitted from multiple campaign appearances with Mr Kirkup, is contesting the seat on behalf of the Liberal Party WA.
However, amid a slew of polls in recent months showing Labor’s primary and TPP vote expanding by double digits, Mr Millman appears on track to retain the seat this evening.
A handful of voters exiting a booth in the electorate’s suburban namesake who spoke to Business News this morning said their vote for Labor was about supporting Mr McGowan and the state government generally.
One voter who expressed disdain for the state government’s propensity to overrule planning decisions said he had voted for Mr Millman because of Mr McGowan’s decision to shut the state’s border one year earlier.
Another voter who said he had historically voted for Liberals also said he had voted for Labor because of the state government’s approach to COVID-19, while yet another who said he had supported Greens candidates in the past had changed his vote for a similar reason.
Labor support was not a monolith, though, with one voter who said she had historically supported Labor said she had shifted to Greens in opposition to both major party’s support for the mining industry.
That was despite the opposition announcing its support for a green energy transition in February.
Ms Migdale, who was handing out how-to-vote cards at a booth in Mount Lawley this morning, told Business News she was undaunted by prospects of a Labor landslide.
“I think that lots of our Mount Lawley constituents have come out today and showed a balanced and measured approach,” she said.
“In this era of COVID politics, anything is to be expected.
“I’m not worried.
“My focus has always been to ensure that I am the best local candidate and of course I would like to see a strong opposition and that’s what I’m out here supporting today.”
