Tightrope seat of Cowan lures Morrison west for last crack

Scott Morrison will head west again for a second campaign visit to Cowan, the second-most marginal seat in the country.

Labor MP for Cowan Anne Aly. Picture: Kym Smith

Scott Morrison will return to Western Australia briefly today in a bid to convince voters in the seat of Cowan — the second-most marginal Labor seat in the country after Herbert — to defeat Labor incumbent Anne Aly.

Dr Aly is fighting to hang on to Cowan, which she took from the Liberals in 2016 but holds by just 0.07 per cent. Cowan needs only 554 votes to change hands.

Earlier in the campaign, Labor insiders were quietly confident Dr Aly, a former academic specialising in counter-terrorism, would retain the seat. Egyptian-born Dr Aly made history as the first Muslim woman to be elected to federal parliament.

She has been campaigning daily at train stations, and organisers say she has engaged with 30,000 constituents via doorknocking and phone calls during her term. The Australian reported last week Dr Aly was among a ­record number of MPs likely to owe their seats to the Greens if Bill Shorten wins on Saturday. In 2016 she got a primary vote of 41.7 per cent and 76 per cent of Greens preferences.

Less than two weeks since his last appearance in Cowan, Mr Morrison is expected to be on the hustings today with Isaac Stewart, a former Young Liberal.