‘Balance of power’: Adam Bandt spruiks Greens vote as count for his seat grinds on

Still fighting for his seat, Adam Bandt has boasted about the Greens’ influence in the next parliament.

Greens leader Adam Bandt has declared the Greens “are now in sole balance of power in the next parliament” after Labor’s landslide win at the federal election cost him two MPs and left him fighting for his seat.

As of Monday morning, the vote count for his electorate of Melbourne was too close to call, with Labor’s Sarah Witty nipping at his heels.

But a defiant Mr Bandt said the results showed strong support for his party and “sets us up well now for an era of progressive change in the parliament”.

“I know people won’t necessarily always be focusing their attention on the senate vote, but it is worth a look,” Mr Bandt told reporters.

“The Greens have actually a record senate vote. We’re nudging 14 per cent at the moment, and we’ll see where it gets to at the end.

“And I think that’s a reflection of the true Greens level of support in Australia, and it’s a pretty remarkable achievement.

“That means that all of our senators are being re-elected, but also in part because of that strong vote and the result we’ve got, the Greens are now in sole balance of power in the next parliament.”

Greens leader Adam Bandt is fighting for his seat of Melbourne. Picture: David Caird/ NewsWire

Going into the election, the Greens outlined what their demands on Labor would be if Anthony Albanese failed to secure a majority and needed to negotiate with the minor party to get his numbers up.

The demands included blocking any new coal or gas projects, expanding Medicare to cover dental health, reforming negative gearing and capital gains tax, ending logging in native forests, and introducing free universal early childhood education.

Mr Bandt said those objectives had not shifted following Saturday’s results.

“I congratulate the Prime Minister on his campaign and obviously the strong position that they’ve got in the government at the moment,” he said.

“But what it means is that with the Greens in sole balance of power in the Senate at the moment, the government can’t blame other individual senators for not being able to get things through.

“The only barrier to getting dental into Medicare now and passing it through the parliament is Labor.

“The only barrier to making childcare free is Labor. The only obstacle to stopping new coal and gas mines from being opened is Labor.”

He said his party stood “ready in the Senate to make this the most progressive parliament that Australia has seen”.

With Mr Bandt’s seat in serious contest, there has been speculation about what that means for his suitability to lead, even if he does hold onto it.

Greens senator Larissa Waters says there are no plans to replace Mr Bandt as party leader. Picture: NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

But senior Greens senator Larissa Waters earlier threw her support behind her leader, dismissing that the minor party was on the hunt for a new captain.

The Queensland senator also called the election results “bittersweet”.

“We’ve got a record high national vote, but we’ve lost two of our wonderful people here in Brisbane in Stephen (Bates) and Max (Chandler-Mather),” Senator Waters told the ABC.

“Now, our vote held in those seats, but we’ve seen such a collapse in support for the LNP that it’s meant our people haven’t been able to retain their seats.”

Fellow Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young gave a similar take, spruiking that “more people across the country voted for the Greens or other minor parties and independents than in any other time of history”.

“It would be a mistake for anyone to take out of this election that Australians overwhelmingly are not concerned about climate and environment, the cost of health care like dental, and to deal with the urgent and immediate issue of housing,” she told the ABC.

“And we’ll be looking at how we can use our balance of power in the Senate, which is stronger than it’s ever been to deliver reform, progressive reform, on those issues.”