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The Guardian
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Liberal and Labor leaders court crossbench after snap Tasmanian election delivers another hung parliament
Tasmania's premier and opposition leader have both reached out to independent MPs in the hope of forming government, after the Labor party lost ground in an early election it brought on. Saturday's snap poll, 16 months after the last election, returned another hung parliament with the Liberals so far securing 14 seats and Labor nine, as counting continued. Both parties will be short of the 18 seats required for majority, with the Liberal premier, Jeremy Rockliff, declaring victory on election night and saying he would try to form a minority government. Rockliff on Sunday told reporters he'd reached out to potential crossbench collaborators. 'My view is that the crossbench, in the cold, hard light of day, will recognise the party – being the Liberal party – with the most number of seats are able to, of course, form a cabinet,' the premier said. 'What Tasmanians clearly voted for yesterday was an end to the political games. They expect a parliament to work together and they expect the parliament to last four years.' Labor under Dean Winter suffered a 3% swing against it to the Liberals. It was Labor's worst vote in Tasmania in more than a century with the party securing 26% of the vote with three-quarters of the ballots counted. However, Winter hasn't ruled out trying to form government if the Liberals are unable to get a left-leaning independent crossbench onside. 'I've spoken to a number of members of the crossbench and offered Labor will try and work differently and collaboratively,' the opposition leader said. 'I won't go into the details of any of the conversations but we'll treat people with respect. I think that's what the crossbench is looking for and it's also what Tasmanians are looking for.' Winter reiterated on Sunday that he would not 'do a deal' with the Greens. Labor would need support from the minor party, which holds five seats, to govern. Winter said he would not compromise on Labor policy, including support for a $945m stadium which is opposed by the Greens and three crossbench independents. One of those independents, a re-elected Kristie Johnston, said she wouldn't enter into a formal deal for confidence and supply with either major party and would provide support on merit. 'They need to negotiate and respect the views of parliament,' she said. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion It could take weeks for the final outcome in four remaining undecided seats, meaning a formal minority agreement might take even longer. Rockliff would need to work with independents to govern, including two, Johnston and the re-elected Craig Garland, who voted for June's no-confidence motion against him. The June vote, which triggered the election, lashed ballooning debt under the Liberals and a bungled Bass Strait ferry delivery. The state Greens leader, Rosalie Woodruff, kept the door ajar for a Labor alliance, calling on Winter to 'have a conversation'. A drawn-out post-election scenario would delay the parliamentary approval process for the new stadium, a condition of Tasmania's AFL licence. The project is supported by the Liberals and Labor but opposed by the Greens, Garland, Johnston and the third elected independent Peter George. The new parliament will be very similar to the previous one that included 14 Liberals, 10 Labor MPS, five Greens, five independents and one Jacqui Lambie Network member.
SBS Australia
an hour ago
- Politics
- SBS Australia
Tasmania election: Labor's hopes of governing still alive despite Liberals' five-seat lead
Tasmania's Labor leader has reached out to independents in the hope of forming government, despite his party losing ground and trailing the Liberals seat-wise. Saturday's snap poll, 16 months after the last, returned another hung parliament with the Liberals so far securing 14 seats and Labor nine, as counting continues. Both will be short of the 18 seats required for majority, with Liberal Premier Jeremy Rockliff declaring victory on election night and saying he would try to form a minority government. Labor under Dean Winter had a 3 per cent swing against it and the party's worst primary vote in Tasmania in more than a century. However, Winter hasn't ruled out trying to form government if the Liberals are unable to get a left-leaning independent crossbench onside. Premier Jeremy Rockliff says he will ask the governor to recommission his Liberal government. Source: AAP / Chris Kidd "I've spoken to a number of members of the crossbench and offered Labor will try and work differently and collaboratively," he said on Saturday. "I won't go into the details of any of the conversations but we'll treat people with respect. "I think that's what the crossbench is looking for and it's also what Tasmanians are looking for." However, Winter reiterated he would not "do a deal" with the Greens — Labor would need support from the party, which hold five seats — to govern. Winter said he would not compromise on Labor policy, including support for a $945 million stadium which is opposed by the Greens and three crossbench independents. One of those independents, a re-elected Kristie Johnston, says she won't enter into a formal deal for confidence and supply with either major party and will provide support on merit. Independent Kristie Johnston says she will not enter into a formal deal with the Liberals or Labor. Source: AAP / Chris Kidd "They need to negotiate and respect the views of parliament," she told AAP. It could take weeks for the final outcome in four remaining undecided seats, meaning formal minority agreements may take even longer. Rockliff would need to work with independents to govern, including two, Johnston and the re-elected Craig Garland, who voted for a no-confidence motion against him. The June vote, which triggered the election, lashed ballooning debt under the Liberals and bungled Bass Strait ferry delivery. Greens leader Rosalie Woodruff has kept the door ajar for a Labor alliance, calling on Winter to "have a conversation". The project is supported by the Liberals and Labor but opposed by the Greens, Garland, Johnston and the third elected independent Peter George. The new parliament will be very similar to the previous one that included 14 Liberals, 10 Labor, five Greens, five independents and one Jacqui Lambie Network member.
Daily Mail
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff seeks to re-form government as Labor heads towards its worst ever result
Tasmania 's Liberal premier has claimed an election victory but his party must still gain the support of a crossbench to govern. Saturday's poll, called after Jeremy Rockliff lost a vote of no-confidence in June, has returned a very similar parliament. The Liberals had picked up a 3.5 per cent swing with counting continuing late on Saturday night, with Labor losing about three per cent of their vote. Labor's primary vote of below 26 per cent is on track to be the worst in Tasmania's history. The Liberals have secured 13 seats and appear on track for 14-15, short of the 18 required for majority but ahead of Labor's eight confirmed seats. Speaking alongside his family, Mr Rockliff claimed a win, saying a Labor-led motion of no-confidence had backfired on leader Dean Winter. 'A little over six weeks ago, the leader of the opposition forced this unnecessary election on the Tasmanian people by moving a vote of no-confidence,' Mr Rockliff said. 'The people of Tasmania, in return, have said they have no confidence in the Labor Party to form government. 'It is our team, the Liberal Party, who will achieve the most seats in this election, with a significantly increased vote.' Mr Rockliff said intended to visit the governor and ask her to recommission his government. However, Mr Rockliff faces dealings with a left-leaning crossbench including at least three independents who are opposed to his pet-project new AFL stadium. Labor could potentially form government with the Greens, who appear set to hold five seats, along with independents. Mr Winter has previously ruled out doing a deal with the Greens but has kept the door ajar for some sort of minority government agreement. Greens leader Rosalie Woodruff urged Mr Winter to pick up the phone and have a conversation about working together. 'We are ready to work collaboratively in the best interest of Tasmanians,' Ms Woodruff said. Independents Kristie Johnston and Craig Garland, who voted no-confidence in Mr Rockliff, have been returned to parliament. Anti-salmon farming independent Peter George has been successful in getting a state seat after a strong run at the recent federal poll. Labor upper house MP Sarah Lovell seemed to indicate her party was keeping the door open to forging a path to its own minority government. 'We have seen Jeremy Rockliff... fail to make a minority worker twice now,' she told the ABC. 'We don't want to be back here in 12 months.' The Liberals, who have been in power since 2014, have been in minority since 2023 when two MPs quit to the crossbench. The Liberals entered the campaign with 14 seats and Labor 10. It could be weeks for the final count to be completed, with the last postal votes not expected to arrive until the end of July. The no-confidence motion against Mr Rockliff, put forward by Labor and supported by the Greens and three crossbenchers, was critical of budget debt and a bungled ferry delivery.
Sky News AU
a day ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Liberals to win more seats than Labor in 2025 Tasmanian election
Sky News confirms the Liberal Party will win more seats than the Labor Party in the 2025 Tasmanian Election.
ABC News
a day ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Sarah Lovell and Eric Abetz spar over what the election result means for Dean Winter's leadership of the Labor party
Sarah Lovell and Eric Abetz spar over what the election result means for Dean Winter's leadership of the Labor party
