NSW Election 2023: Leppington and East Hills key battlegrounds
Key battlegrounds in Leppington and East Hills have been decided. Follow results in southwest Sydney here.
Macarthur
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Labor has claimed its former heartland of East Hills, with Kylie Wilkinson winning the seat from Liberal Wendy Lindsay.
Wilkinson won the seat with 54.3 per cent of the votes counted as when counting closed, and delivered her maiden speech to supporters at Revesby Workers club.
The new East Hills MP told the Express that Labor had “finally done it.”
“We‘ve been so close so many times but it’s good to see the seat back with Labor.”
Speaking with Wendy Lindsay at the polling booth, earlier in the day she said would be “at peace” with how the results turned out tonight.
She was not available for comment at the time of publication.
Meanwhile, Liverpool, Fairfield, Canterbury, Bankstown, Cabramatta all were called earlier in the evening as retained seats in Labor heartlands.
Badgerys Creek was the one shining light for the Liberals in Sydney’s southwest, it remains a Liberal seat with Tanya Davis to serve her fifth term.
East Hills, which was Labor’s for 58 years until the 2011 wipe-out, was held by Ms Lindsay on a notional 0.1 per cent.
Here is how the day panned out.
State of play in Macarthur - 10.04pm
Labor has retained their seats in Campbelltown and Macquarie Fields with MPs Greg Warren and Anoulack Chanthivong.
While in the new electorate of Leppington, Labor‘s Nathan Hagarty has been declared the winner after a “tough” fight between him and Liberal’s Therese Fedeli.
Meanwhile, in Camden, the Liberals could be poised for a major upset as the race tightens between incumbent MP Peter Sidgreaves and Labor hopeful Sally Quinnell.
The seat is still in doubt, but is likely to see an ALP win as they have 51.91 per cent of the vote.
The seat of Holsworthy is also likely to see a Labor win, but in Badgerys Creek, Liberal incumbent Tanya Davies has retained her seat.
East Hills goes to Labor, Wilkinson makes first speech - 9.58pm
Labor candidate for East Hills Kylie Wilkinson has made her maiden speech in front of supporters at the Revesby Sports club.
“After years East Hills is finally back where it belongs with Labor,” she said, to a chorus of applause from supporters.
“Labor seat means so much to me who have lived under 12 years as a Liberal government no more,” she said.
“I will make sure it stays in Labor for many years to come.”
The new East Hills MP told the Express that Labor has “finally done it.”
“A lot of people have been working hard over the last 12 years and it feels like we've finally done it,” she said.
“We‘ve been so close so many times but it’s good to see the seat back with Labor.”
Ms Wilkinson‘s father Arthur Hanneman said he was “very proud” of his daughter.
“Tonight proves she's always been a winner and she will always be a winner in my heart.”
Ms Wilkinson told her supporters she “won't be sleeping in tomorrow”.
“It‘s been hard but I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”
Hagarty speaks on historic Leppington win - 9.06pm
Nathan Hagarty said it was only just starting to sink in, but he was ready to lead Leppington for the next four years.
He entered his after-party with volunteers forming a guard of honour to cheer him on and shake his hand.
“I have been preparing my whole life and I love this community and I’m ready to do the job,” he said.
“We fought a really hard race. We worked hard and the results show that.
“This is an area that is underfunded and neglected and there are a lot of services and infrastructure that need to go into this community and that’s what I’ll be working on.”
Mr Hagarty said it was fantastic to be elected as a first term MP in a newly formed government especially after “12 years in the wilderness”.
Leppington has been called for Labor’s Nathan Hagarty who says he was humbled by the electorate’s decision. pic.twitter.com/a0TytVdvXR
— Annie Lewis (@LewisAnni) March 25, 2023
He said his priorities would include a new high school and an upgrade to 15th Ave.
“We need schools and hospitals and roads and that’s what I’m here to do,” he said.
New seat of Leppington called - 8.44pm
The new seat of Leppington has been called for Labor.
Nathan Hagarty is set to be the seat’s inaugural MP with 47.15 per cent of the primary vote and 54.86 per cent on a two-party preferred basis.
The function room at the Mercure Hotel at the Liverpool Catholic Club is packed as volunteers await his arrival.
One Nation candidate Mandar Tamhankar was the ‘best of the rest’ in the seat with 7.9 per cent of the primary vote, ahead of The Greens Apurva Shukla with 4.9 per cent.
Fairfield run and won - 8.26pm
The southwest electorate of Fairfield has been won by Labor candidate David Saliba.
Mr Saliba said he‘s “solely committed to delivering for Fairfield.”
“Thank you Fairfield for your support. Let‘s do this!.”
More seats called - 8.18pm
In another win for Labor in south west Sydney, Bankstown has also been called for the Labor Party.
Candidate Jihad Dib won for Labor with a margin of more than 20 per cent.
The electorate was held by One Nation’s Tania Mihailuk who was initially elected as a Labor Party member.
Fairfield Labor MP Guy Zangari’s announcement to not run for re-election signalled the start of a busy campaign from major parties and independents to win over residents.
But, Labor retained the seat with the new candidate David Saliba called as the winner with a 27.16 per cent margin just after 8pm.
In the electorate of Liverpool, Labor Candidate Charishma Kaliyanda said it had been a long few months of the election campaign but she’s feeling excited.
“We‘ve been working hard over the last week with pre-polling to talk to as many people as a lot of voters were wanting to know specifically what’s in store for southwest Sydney.”
“We made sure we spoke to every person, especially when it comes to things like health, education.”
Davies ‘humbly hopeful’ to retain Badgerys Creek - 8.16pm
Liberal MP for Badgerys Creek Tanya Davis said with early numbers coming in she‘s feeling “humbly hopeful” to retain her seat.
“We are really waiting to get all of the numbers in and then we can breathe a sigh of relief,” she said.
Ms Davis said it had been a fantastic day meeting with everyone as voting was underway.
“They (constituents) are already giving me jobs to do that‘s keeping me busy which is really lovely,” she said.
“It‘s been nice to get positive feedback over the previous four years.”
Early calls on SW Sydney seats - 8.00pm
Tanya Davies has retained her position as MP of the new Badgerys Creek electorate. The former Mulgoa MP was first voted in during the 2011 election, and will now serve her fifth term.
The Canterbury electorate has also been called for Labor’s Sophie Cotsis. She was first voted in during a 2016 by-election, and will serve her second term.
The ABC has called the seat of Campbelltown for Labor’s incumbent Greg Warren, but he is yet unwilling to claim victory.
“It‘s not finalised yet. I never take anything for granted,” he said.
“The support and gratitude and generosity I get from our community is truly special to me.”
Mr Warren said at the end of the day, his priority would be the issues that confronted the community.
“It‘s not the numbers on the screen on election night,” he said.
“Things like Appin Rd, health services, getting our schools fixed, and getting train services back to the level they need to be.”
Macquarie Fields has also been retained by Labor’s Anoulack Chanthivong. He was first elected in 2015 and will serve his third term.
Shock as Labor leads early Camden counting - 7.28pm
In Camden, early numbers are suggesting the Liberal Party could be in for an upset.
Labor’s Sally Quinnell currently has 39.77 per cent of the vote with Peter Sidgreaves coming in close at 34.09 per cent.
The Liberal Party has held the seat for 12 years.
“I think it’s going to be extremely close,” Ms Quinnell said.
“I’m not making any early assumptions until we get all the numbers in.
“Today was great. We had a lot of fun and spoke to a lot of voters who seemed happy with what we were doing.”
Leppington Liberal candidate ‘hopeful’ of good result - 7.26pm
Therese Fedeli said it had been a fantastic Election Day after weeks of campaigning.
“I’m exhausted, like all other candidates are I imagine,” she said.
“I visited five or six nights and everyone was polite and friendly and it was great to see everyone.”
Ms Fedeli would not be drawn on what she thought tonight’s outcome could be but said she was hopeful.
Cabramatta candidates “excited” as voting underway - 7.19pm
Labor candidate for Cabramatta Tri Vo said he‘s “feeling excited” as counting for the election begins.
“W just have to wait for the results and I hope all goes well because I have a lot of ideas and plans for the areas,” he said.
“I will follow up about the $155m committed to Fairfield hospital were my 3 children were born.”
Mr Vo said he looks forward to potentially being in government.
“Hopefully we form a majority government and there‘s a lot of things we can do in southwest sydney in the next many years.”
Independent candidate Kate Hoang said it‘s been a “long day but I’m feeling fine.”
Last-minute thoughts from Leppington candidates - 6.40pm
Greens candidate Apurva Shukla said it was super exciting being a part of the first election for the new electorate.
“There have been a lot of new people that have moved into this area so I am really keen to see how the demographics have shifted and changed the results of this area,” he said.
“It was amazing to see today, everything running like clockwork with all the AEC volunteers doing their part and it is great when democracy works.
“I am really keen to see the results.”
Mr Shukla said winning is always the goal, but the next best thing would be for the numbers to show the future MP, they could not take this seat for granted.
“I mean southwest Sydney is aching for change and we saw especially with Covid, this rampant inequality,” he said.
“It‘s high time for change and I think a lot of people are feeling this rising cost of living and all these major hurdles and they want change.
“It will be interesting to see what happens tonight and how the narrative is shifting.”
Sustainable Australia Party candidate Danica Sajn said the day had flown by after weeks of preparation, and campaigning.
Having lived in Leppington for four years, and the broader southwest Sydney region for most of her life, Ms Sajn said it would be interesting to see what comes out of the new electorate.
“I have heard it will be close,” Ms Sajn said.
“We are hoping for an Upper House win, and we think we are in with a good chance and we need two to 2.5 per cent of the vote for the Upper House.
“We have filled 82 of the electorates with local candidates and we have had that added exposure because people see our parties name on both ballot papers so they hopefully take us seriously.”
Ms Sajn praised the volunteers from all parties and the AEC workers in Leppington, who had dedicated their day to the election.
“Everyone was so friendly, it was great to see,” she said.
Lib ‘at peace’ whichever way East Hills goes - 5.23pm
With polling booths closing in an hour, sitting Liberal MP for the tightly contested seat of East Hills Wendy Lindsay said she’s “at peace” with how the results turn out tonight.
“My team and I had a hard last four years and we’ve worked really hard,” she said.
“Whatever happens, I’m at peace with it. It’s been an interesting ride.”
Ms Lindsay said the cost of living has been a big focus for East Hills constituents.
“The rising interest rates and costs has without a doubt impacted families here and the future kids fund has been well received,” she said.
Labor candidate contesting for East Hills Kylie Wilkinson said she’s surprised at how good she’s feeling despite a busy campaign period.
“We’ve been getting good feedback from voters… it’s been a really good turnout,” she said.
Ms Wilkinson said it’s been great to hear from locals in the community about their concerns, especially about the cost of living.
“We have a lot of nurses and teachers in the area so their concerns are about the conditions and pay.”
“The working people are suffering and are looking for a change.”
A ‘twist’ on the traditional democracy sausage - 4.29pm
Bonnyrigg High School has put a twist on the traditional democracy sausage line-up.
The newly established P&C group comprised of 40 parents had mixed lolly bags for sale to accompany the beloved sausage sizzle.
But the big winner was the Vietnamese iced and slushie coffees which sold out - twice.
President of Bonnyrigg High P&C Ben Stewart, said this was the first group of parents to represent the school in the last 15 years.
“We’re fundraising for the kids and the school,” he said.
“The money from today will go towards refurbishing the library, lockers as the school has none and shade which they’re in desperate need of.”
Fairfield mayor Frank Carbone and Federal Member for Fowler Dai Le also attended the sausage sizzle earlier in the day - serving out food to eager voters.
Former Fairfield City Councillor and Labor volunteer Adrian Wong said parents in the area were looking for change.
“They want investment in education and under a proposed Labor government will see the 10,000 permanent teacher jobs,” he said.
“This means the teachers will be familiar with the students and be familiar with their needs, especially if they require special needs.”
Volunteers spirits stay high as lines slow down - 2.58pm
While the lines are slowing down at Green Valley Public School in the Liverpool electorate, dedicated volunteers are keeping their spirits high.
Labor volunteer Mira Ibrahim said Liverpool constituents are concerned about cost of living and interest rates.
“Everything is getting expensive, especially when it comes to renting and buying,” she said.
While this isn’t the first election Ms Ibrahim has volunteered for, she said the day has been a positive one.
“The difference (from other elections) is people already know who to vote for and they want to vote right.”
While the day is slowing down, Liberal volunteer Elias Hanse said the morning was “flat out” before calming down for the afternoon.
“People are talking about cost of living as things are getting expensive, including fuel prices,” he said.
This is the first time Mr Hanse has volunteered and is a family friend of Liberal Candidate Richard Ammoun.
“He’s (Richard Ammoun) a good guy and I wanted to help him out,” Mr Hanse said.
Steady stream of voters for democracy sausages - 12.21pm
Storm Gilbert, president of the Denham Court Public School’s P&C, said there had been a steady stream of traffic at the polling booth.
But for residents lining up, they could purchase from the rows and rows of baked goods or snag a classic democracy sausage.
Parents, teachers and businesses around the community donated baked goods to be sold at the P&C bake sale.
“We are raising funds to go back straight into the school with learning resources and other things,” Ms Gilbert said.
“The BBQ is run by the Year Six parents and a number of teachers and that is specifically for the year six fundraisers.”
Ms Gilbert said she could remember coming along with her mum who needed to vote, and then being able to get a sausage sizzle as a treat.
She said it was an “iconic” part of any Election Day.
“We are really fortunate in Australia that we have a democracy, so you can come and vote and say how you want your country to look,” Ms Gilbert said.
“Then at the same time you can contribute to the local school by buying a cupcake or sausage.
“It’s very Australian and also very nostalgic in a way. We are so grateful to all the volunteers and everyone who donated today.”
Mother-of-two says cost of living ‘front of mind’ - 11.51am
Denham Court resident Kylie Pratt, a mother of two, said cost of living was front of mind when she cast her vote.
“It’s one of the biggest things on everyone’s radar at the moment,” she said.
“Our interest rates have gone up, and so have our electricity bill and water bill and our food bills - it’s just insane.
“I also travel a long distance for work, so tolls and roads are also important to me.”
When it came to her community, Ms Pratt said they were lacking in basic fundamental infrastructure.
She added that the public school could only take a minimum number of children despite the fact they were in the Leppington corridor that has been identified as an area of rapid development.
“We have a daycare shortage around here which is a really big problem for a lot of families,” Ms Pratt said.
“Those sorts of issues really stick out to me.”
Denham Court falls into the new Leppington electorate, and Ms Pratt said there was a lot more “spruiking” by both major parties.
“There was a lot more participation by the da dusted in our community,” she said.
“Because of the new electorate it was a lot more obvious that they were here and wanted to be part of our community and hear what we have to say.”
‘Day to day’ issues on the mind - 11.43am
Rocco Nasso has been a volunteer with the Liberal Party more than a decade, and has lived in the region his whole life.
Living in Denham Court, Mr Nasso is one of thousands of voters who are part of the new electorate in Leppington.
When talking to voters, he said it was the “day to day” issues that were front of mind this election.
“Infrastructure, schools, health and cost of living - all those sorts of things,” Mr Rocco said.
“People are worried about cost of locking and housing and especially the way Macarthur is growing.
“People want someone local to support the area.”
Mr Rocco believes Therese Fedeli is the right person to lead the region, especially with her experience as the mayor of Camden.
“She’s a family woman and I think she has proved herself,” he said.
Volunteer believes ‘change is on the way’ - 10.51am
Simon Jovanovic proudly wears a Labor shirt as he hands out “how to vote” cards to the voters waiting in the long line snaking around the community centre.
He has been a resident of Macarthur for 30 years, and currently lives in Austral which falls under the new electorate of Leppington.
“It’s an important point in time to see some changes and see some local investment back in the area,” Mr Jovanovic said.
“For roads in particular, as well as infrastructure and family and community services.
“With the growth happening in the area, I think Labor is aligned with what the community really needs.”
Mr Jovanovic said Labor had plans to fund road upgrades, schools and health infrastructure which were three key areas for him.
He said It was great to be out in the election day that saw Leppington as an electorate vote for the first time.
“I think Nathan is a person in our community that has earned the right to represent Leppington,” Mr Jovanovic said.
“He is well known. He is well established. He has the credibility which I find is all of the most important things for leadership.
“I think change is on the way.”
Voter’s concerns over health services - 10.27am
Mona Ibrahim has been a resident of southwest Sydney and an Australian citizen for more than 40 years after moving here from Sudan.
On Saturday morning, the 70-year-old lined up at the Carnes Hill Community Centre for an hour to cast her vote but she was not hopeful about the future.
“Australia is a beautiful country. I love it,” she said.
“But what are they doing? Every year they make promises and promises but nothing ever happens.
“We come here to do what we have to do, now they should do what they said they would do.”
Mrs Ibrahim said she was most concerned about the health services after having to sit for 17 hours in a chat at Liverpool Hospital.
“I was at the GP and my blood pressure was high and I was having heart issues,” she said.
“I didn’t want to go but because it was so serious, I did and it was seven hours before they even checked me.
“I’m 70 years old with heart issues and I was sitting there waiting.”
Mrs Ibrahim also queried what the government was doing to help engage people in the workforce.
She commented on how there were concerns about shortages with teachers, and nurses but nothing seemed to be done.
“Every year they make promises but every year we have the same problems,” Ms Ibrahim said.
“I hope something changes.”
Long lines early in newest SW Sydney seat - 9.30am
The seat of Leppington will be run and won for the first time today, and voters are getting out early to play their part in democracy.
There were long lines at the Carnes Hill Community Centre as of 9.30am as voters choose between Liberal candidate Therese Fedeli, Sustainable Australia Party candidate Danica Sajn, Greens candidate Apurva Shukla, One Nation candidate Mandar Tamhankar, and Labor candidate Nathan Hagarty.
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