Thanks for following along tonight! It was a wild ride, but the Parramatta seat has been retained. Be sure to check the wrap up story that will break down all the big and small moments from election day.
Good night!
Federal Election 2019: Parramatta election results
The votes have been counted and the sausages have been eaten - Labor's Julie Owens has retained her seat of Parramatta.
The seat of Parramatta is as varied as the population. It has been held by both Liberal and Labor since it was created. Liberal’s held the seat from 1996 until 2001 when they lost, with current MP Julie Owens stepping into the spot in 2004, and holding it since.
Ms Owens will be going up against Liberal’s Charles Camenzuli, United Australia Party’s Ganesh Sahadev Loke, The Greens Phil Bradley, a current councillor who also contested the State Election, Asma Payara from the Christian Democratic Party (Fred Nile Group) and Oscar Grenfell from the Socialist Equality Party.
Updates
That's a wrap
Small swings
Parramatta federal Labor MP Julie Owens looks set to retain her seat despite a small swing to the Liberal Party.
Ms Owens, who has held the seat since 2004, has 45.8 per cent of first preference votes with almost 18 per cent of the votes counted.
The Australia Electoral Commission's two-party preferred estimate at this stage has Ms Owens at 55.9 per cent and Liberal candidate Charles Camenzuli at 44.1 per cent.
Ms Owens said the early results are looking "positive" for her to be returned to the seat.
Early voters
Parramatta voters have helped set a new national record for early voting. Australians have been able to vote over a period of three weeks before the election, with the final opportunity ending today.
The Australian Electoral Commission announced yesterday that more than four million votes had been cast nationally at early voting centres before the last day of pre-poll voting on Friday. More than 533,000 people voted at early voting centres on Thursday alone.
The overall amount far exceeds the 2.55 million votes cast at the same stage of pre-poll voting in the 2016 federal election.
In the federal electorate of Parramatta, more than 20,800 votes were cast before Friday – about 20 per cent of people enrolled to vote.
The Australian Electoral Commission has said it would count a substantial number of pre-poll votes on the night but some of the early ballots have a separate counting process, which could slow down the count.
Tallying begins
The polling booths have now closed and the tough task of tallying can now begin. Keep track of all the numbers here and watch the Sky News live stream above.
Last votes
Final voters headed to Rosehill Public School with a 30 minutes to go before booths close. Volunteers from the Labor and Liberal parties have given their observations from today.
Greens candidate
He might be an outsider for the win, but The Greens' Phil Bradley said Parramatta is at the coalface for climate change issues, which he hopes to drive this election.
Mr Bradley is having a fourth consecutive crack at winning the seat of Parramatta, after contesting the 2010, 2013 and 2016 federal elections.
Mr Bradley believes the loss of thousands of mature trees in the west’s development drive has led to more extreme weather events.
“There is clear evidence in western Sydney of dramatically rising temperatures — and this has coincided with more development,” said the Parramatta councillor.
War of the words
Liberal candidate Charles Camenzuli accused ALP opponent Julie Owens of failing to deliver “any meaningful projects” since she first won the seat in 2004, sparking a war of words between the pair.
“The mood is for change here after 15 years of neglect in the electorate because of the inactive member,” Mr Camenzuli said.
Ms Owens hit back, saying it was the Coalition Government which had let down the electorate over the past six years.
“I can’t think of any delivery for Parramatta during this time,” she said.
Pub test
There are a lot of ways to determine the most popular candidate, but in Parramatta the best way is in the pub. Punters have revealed education and heritage issues are among the most important issues to them.
Three undecided voters, enjoying a drink at the Royal Oak Hotel, each said they expected more from both major political parties.
Richard Smith, of North Parramatta, said he would probably vote for Labor because “my perception is they are more interested in improving education” and “humanitarian issues”.
“I’m focused on the bigger issues,” Mr Smith said. “Australia is a wealthy nation and we have an international responsibility to look after people and better welcome them here.”
Lee Del Pizzo, of Parramatta, said local politicians should be focusing more on heritage issues.
The contender
Charles Camenzuli is at long odds to win the federal seat of Parramatta — but the outspoken Liberal candidate believes a fallen leader in his own ranks, as well as a wannabe Prime Minister, could help him spring an upset.
The 62-year-old, in the conservative wing of the party, was plugged in to contest the seat of Parramatta for a second time after he won a preselection vote 65-51 earlier this month.
In his previous shot, at the 2010 federal election, Mr Camenzuli had a 6.14 per cent first-preference swing to him. However, it was not enough to beat Ms Owens, who has held the seat since 2004.
Mr Camenzuli has recently sent missives to Liberal Party officials over his concerns around “policy mismanagement”, particularly on “manipulation” of the energy sector.
“I’ve been outspoken, and isn’t that what the people of Parramatta would want?” he said.
“I will criticise anything I see wrong, whether it’s inside or outside the Liberal and Labor parties.
“Anyone who has tried to achieve anything of any worth will always have their detractors.”
Candidate journey
Julie Owens' biggest competitor is Liberal's Charles Camenzuli. The pair have had a very different path which has lead them to politics.
Parramatta has traditionally been a bellwether seat, going with the government of the day. But Ms Owens has bucked that trend, getting elected even when Labor has been rolled nationally at the polls.
Ms Owens counts her role in Labor’s “education revolution” during the Rudd-Gillard governments as her biggest achievement as Parramatta MP since 2004.
“When I first got elected in 2004, people in Parramatta were half as likely to go to university as the rest of Sydney,” Ms Owens told the Advertiser.
“But in our six years of government (from 2007-13), we really changed that around.
“Western Sydney became a university with one of the largest numbers of advanced students.
“Unfortunately it’s swung back in the wrong direction in the past six years under the Coalition, so we’ll have to turn it around again.
“We’ll be in catch-up mode on education, if we’re elected.”
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