Liberal vote surges as Werribee voters send Labor a message
Labor clings to narrow lead as voter backlash hits Premier Jacinta Allan in once safe Labor seat.
Labor is clinging to slim lead as a voter backlash hits Premier Jacinta Allan in the once safe Labor seat of Werribee.
As at 9pm on Saturday, latest voting in the Labor heartland seat — which the ALP has held since 1979 — suggested a major swing to the Liberals was underway.
VEC counting on a two-party preferred basis had Labor leading the Liberals 50.37 per cent to 49.63 per cent in a seat the ALP had a 10 per cent margin in based on the 2022 state election results.
With almost 30 per cent of the votes counted, Labor’s John Lister was just ahead of Liberal Steve Murphy on first preference votes, holding 28.19 per cent of the vote to Mr Murphy’s 27.06 per cent. Mr Lister had 4,426 first preference votes and Mr Murphy 4,130.
In Prahran, the Greens are strengthening the party’s hold on the seat.
At 9pm, Greens candidate Angelica Di Camillo and Liberal candidate Rachel Westaway were locked in a tight race, with the Greens securing 36.07 per cent of first preference votes to the Liberals 36.04 per cent. The seat now looks like it will be decided on preferences, which could favour the Liberals.
After a big day of voting in two high-stakes Victorian by-elections, the polls in Werribee and Prahran have closed and counting is underway.
Retaining the outer suburban seat of Werribee, which is in traditional Labor heartland and has not been lost by the party since 1979, is seen as a key test for the Allan Labor government leading into next year’s state election.
While Labor holds Werribee by a 10.9 per cent margin, the government is understood to be bracing for a swing against it on Saturday, with some voters believing the party has neglected locals in the traditionally safe Labor seat.
Congestion on roads resulting from a lack of investment in local infrastructure to support a growing population has been highlighted as a key issue by voters.
Labor is running local school teacher and CFA volunteer John Lister as its candidate, while the Liberals are fielding Steve Murphy, a former police officer who works in real estate in the area.
Among the other 10 contenders for Werribee are Greens candidate Rifai Raheem, City of Whittlesea mayor Aidan McLindon who is running as an independent, and another independent Paul Hopper, a lifelong Werribee resident who won 5.9 per cent of the votes at the 2022 state election.
Labor has dominated the seat of Werribee, holding it between 1979 and 2002 before it was removed, and then again since its recreation in 2014.
Saturday’s by-election was triggered by the retirement of former Victorian Treasurer, Tim Pallas, who won 45 per cent of the primary votes at the 2022 state election.
Mr Pallas had served much of the area, which is traditional Labor heartland, since 2006.
On Saturday evening, campaign volunteers were out in force trying to catch the last of the voters as they headed into a polling booth at Werribee Secondary College.
Darren O’Flynn, who owns an engineering and manufacturing facility, said he had voted for Mr Murphy because they thought the Liberals were “more pro business”.
Madison Couacaud, 30, said she voted for Paul Hopper because he was prioritising safety.
“He’s a member of the community as well,” Ms Couacaud said.
Meanwhile, on the other side of Melbourne, a rare Liberal-Greens showdown is underway at the Prahran by-election in Melbourne’s inner southeast.
Labor is not running a candidate in the vote, which was triggered by the resignation of Greens MP Sam Hibbins who quit the party after admitting to having an affair with a staffer.
Former Labor MP Tony Lupton is also contesting the seat as an independent, and has preferenced the Liberals.
At about 7pm, Mr Murphy arrived at Liberal Party headquarters in Werribee alongside party leader Brad Battin to resounding applause.
Moira Deeming, acting as MC, introduced the pair and praised Mr Battin’s performance as the party’s new leader.
“You leadership, and the way you have taken the west seriously, has been noticed,” Mrs Deeming said.
Mr Battin said the biggest message he received from voters was that the west had been neglected by Labor.
“The Liberal Party is back,” Mr Battin declared.
“We are here and we are ready.”
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