Tim Wilson says Goldstein win is 'deeply emotional', takes parting shot at Zoe Daniel
An emotional Tim Wilson has taken aim at independent Zoe Daniel for not yet conceding defeat in the seat of Goldstein.
The former Liberal member is set to reclaim Goldstein from Ms Daniel, making her the first of the "teal" group to lose their seat since coming to power in 2022.
Mr Wilson was met by a large crowd of supporters in a Brighton park on Wednesday where he made his victory speech.
He said the win was deeply emotional for him, and that he felt humbled and privileged to represent Goldstein again.
He described his team as "defying political gravity" to help him secure the seat.
"Three years ago, people said that Goldstein could not be won, I was written off, the Liberal Party was written off.
"I am very proud — genuinely very proud — to say that we are pleased to accept that we have won the seat of Goldstein back," he said, becoming teary.
Zoe Daniel says she's awaiting further results from the count, saying the margin is still close.
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ABC News: Danielle Bonica
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Mr Wilson said he did not think he had heard from Ms Daniel but admitted that his phone "had exploded over the past 24 hours" so he may have missed a message.
"The former member has continued to post content on social media suggesting that they wished the count to continue," Mr Wilson said.
"All I will say is this: after the last election, and let's be very honest, it was brutal … I showed respect to my supporters, to the people that voted for me by conceding because I thought it was important to provide a clean slate."
He also took a swipe at Climate 200 backer, Simon Holmes à Court.
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We did not have massive cheques written to us by entities based in Sydney who tried to treat the community like it was an acquisition in a trust fund.
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Mr Wilson told the media he did not want to talk about the national result or the Liberal Party leadership today.
He dodged a question about whether he had any leadership aspirations, saying his focus had been on making it back into parliament.
Tim Wilson described his team as "defying gravity" in helping return him to parliament.
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ABC News: ABC News
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He said the challenges Australia faced had grown more substantial since his last term in office, including in the areas of education, jobs and housing affordability.
"That sense of aspiration, that dream is at risk right now.
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We are in a time in history where a lot of the things that we've been able to take for granted as a country now sit on the precipice.
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He said small businesses were suffering because of a lack of courage of the Labor government.
"The current government has thrown sugar on the table to get themselves through an election but they have not addressed the root cause of the problem."
Supporters joined Tim Wilson in a Brighton park this morning for his victory speech.
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ABC News: ABC News
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On Tuesday night, Ms Daniel posted on social media that she believed it was sensible to wait for further results "out of respect for my scrutineers and the democratic process".
She said there was a margin of just a few hundreds votes while 12, 000 ballots were still to be counted.
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Counting continues elsewhere
The intense battle for Greens leader Adam Bandt's seat of Melbourne is ongoing.
Sarah Witty was several thousands votes ahead and Mr Bandt needed 33 per cent of preference to retain his seat.
The Australian Electoral Commission's release of official preference counts revealed flows of under 26 per cent.
Independent Monique Ryan remained just ahead of the Liberals' Amelia Hamer in Kooyong.
The Liberal Party remained ahead in Flinders and Monash.
There were just a few hundred votes between Labor's Lisa Chesters and the Nationals' Andrew Lethlean in Bendigo.
Menzies was likely to be won by Labor's Gabriel Ng.
And Calwell was yet to be declared.
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