By Andrea Hayward
Fresh from a resounding win in the Northern Territory election, the Country Liberal Party says it will get to work tackling crime.
The CLP will form government after toppling Labor and Chief Minister Eva Lawler in her own seat of Drysdale.
Finocchiaro claimed victory as the first female CLP Chief Minister-elect.Credit: Getty Images
Labor suffered a devastating defeat with a swing of 10.1 per cent to the CLP on a two-party preferred basis, with the ALP gaining just 29.5 per cent of the primary vote.
With half of the vote counted, the CLP had notched up a strong primary vote of 47.8 per cent.
The CLP looks to take 16 seats of the 25-seat parliament, with at least one independent elected and the potential for the Greens to pick up their first NT seat in Fannie Bay.
Labor could have as few as four seats, ABC election analyst Antony Green predicted late on Saturday night.
Chief Minister Eva Lawler, left, and Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro met for a final public face-off ahead of the poll.
Chief Minister-elect Lia Finocchiaro, the first woman to lead the CLP, said the hard work on behalf of all Territorians would begin on Sunday in “the start of a new day and a new chapter”.
“I will meet with the police commissioner and the chief executive of the chief minister and cabinet to start the work that must immediately begin to make the territory safe,” she said in her acceptance speech. “We will do whatever it takes … to restore community safety.”
Finocchiaro said her party would get to work on delivering its plan to reduce crime, rebuild the economy and restore the lifestyle of Territorian, adding that the election victory represented a turning point for the territory’s future, she said.
“Territorians have used their voice to stand up against Labor who have taken them for granted for far too long,” Finocchiaro said.
“Territorians have stood up against nearly two decades of escalating crime and an economy going backwards, and the erosion of our once-iconic lifestyle.”
Labor will now turn its mind to finding a new leader. Lawler said it had been an honour to lead the Northern Territory.
“Every day I drove into work, I would pinch myself and say this is an honour,” she said. “I would have liked longer but it is now up to Labor … in opposition to rebuild and look forward, but also to listen to what Territorians have said. That is politics.”
Former chief minister and Labor MP Natasha Fyles said the result was disappointing but paid tribute to Lawler.
“Palmerston is tough. She was the first person to be re-elected as a Labor member with the redistribution, but the other factors with the swing against the Labor Party has played into that,” Fyles told ABC Television.
In the seat of Fannie Bay, things look promising for Greens candidate Suki Dorras-Walker, who leads the CLP in early voting. A win there would be the first ever for the Greens in the Northern Territory.
In the seat of Mulka, independent candidate Yingiya Mark Guyula was poised to defeat the CLP, promising to represent his country constituents.
Key issues to emerge during the election campaign included the environment, crime and cost of living.
AAP
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