Labor has stormed to a stunning victory in the southwestern Adelaide seat of Boothby

A former blue-ribbon Liberal electorate has turned into a Labor stronghold.

Labor has stormed to a stunning victory in the southwestern Adelaide seat of Boothby, sweeping up a huge 10 per cent swing to transform the former blue-ribbon Liberal electorate into a Labor stronghold.

With more than half of the vote counted by 8.30pm, Labor MP Louise Miller-Frost had trounced Liberal rival Nicolle Flint, gathering a two-party preferred vote of 64.31 per cent to 35.69 per cent.

She became the first Labor MP to defend Boothby in almost 80 years and denied a political comeback to Ms Flint, who held the seat for the Liberals from 2016 to 2022.

Ms Flint conceded just before 8pm and, claiming victory just after 8.05pm, Ms Miller-Frost said the campaign had been “very positive over the last few weeks”.

Louise Miller Frost, MP for Boothby, at Mitcham Village Institute. Picture: Brett Hartwig

“But you never know until the night. It is the honour of my life to be the Member for Boothby, and I am so thrilled to be able to continue to deliver for my community,” she said.

“Throughout my last term and during the campaign, I have concentrated on the people of Boothby, and what we can do to make their lives better.

“I’ve been supported by a huge number of volunteers, and I am so grateful for the support I’ve received.”

Conceding, Ms Flint said: “We worked as hard as we could for our local community, and we respect their decision.”

Ms Miller-Frost, who had faced some criticism before polling day for keeping a low profile, secured 42.16 per cent of primary vote and a swing of almost 10 per cent, with 34 of 55 booths counted by just after 8pm.

Ms Flint had 30.45 per cent – a swing against the Liberals of more than five per cent. The Greens Joanna Wells had secured 19.65 per cent of the first-preference count.

Labor strategists were confident early in the count and were unofficially calling the seat in their favour just before 7pm.

By 7.30pm, their Liberal rivals had effectively given up hope of Ms Flint winning.

Earlier, a confident but cautious mood enveloped Labor supporters at Cumberland United Football Club, in Clarence Gardens, where Ms Miller-Frost staged her campaign party.

Madi Pike, who turns 23 on Sunday, said she had taken every opportunity to engage with voters at both the Marion RSL polling booth and Brighton booth during pre-polling.

“There were quite a lot of different perspectives, a lot of different thoughts, a lot of different priorities coming into this election,” she said.

Federal Election in the seat of Boothby - Liberal candidate Nicolle Flint at Colonel Light Gardens Primary School. Picture: Brett Hartwig

Celebrating her 18th birthday on election night in 2019, things didn’t turn out the way that she had hoped.

While that was rectified in 2022, she thought 2025 might be another good year for both Ms Pike and Ms Miller-Frost.

“I definitely have felt positive energy from people around me that aren’t as close to the party,” she said.

“So I think we will stay the most nervous until the end, but trying to stay optimistic.”

Daniel Roocroft, 20, has also volunteered throughout the campaign for Labor and said he too was optimistic of a positive result for Ms Miller-Frost – with the caveat that he never completely trusted polling data after the 2019 election.

“From the data I have seen it looks pretty strong, so I would say I’m fairly confident in a win, but I don’t want to jinx myself,” he said.

Ms Miller-Frost ended more than 70 years of Liberal rule in Boothby when she snared the seat for Labor in 2022.

The previous Labor MP in Boothby, Thomas Sheehy, won the seat in 1943 and retained it in 1946 before losing to the Liberals in 1949.

Ms Flint abruptly quit federal politics at the 2022 election, citing burnout, abuse, harassment and significant health issues.

Premier Peter Malinauskas with Labor candidate for Boothby Louise Miller Frost, at Mitcham Village Institute. Picture: Brett Hartwig

Earlier, Ms Miller-Frost spent Saturday morning greeting voters alongside Premier Peter Malinauskas at Mitcham Village Institute, at Boothby’s eastern fringe.

Ms Miller-Frost, who before entering parliament was chief executive officer of St Vincent de Paul Society in SA, cast her vote accompanied by her two grandsons.

Ms Flint, previously a political adviser and solicitor, cast her vote at Colonel Light Gardens Primary School.

Boothby stretches from Leawood Gardens in the northeast, with the northern boundary running along Cross Rd, through the Belair train and Glenelg tram line to Glenelg North and the coast. The southern boundary at Marino heads east along Majors and Main South roads, then through Bedford Park, Bellevue Heights. Blackwood and Glenalta to Upper Sturt.

Boothby was a dynastic Liberal stronghold for more than 72 years, having most recently been held by Labor in 1949 until Ms Miller-Frost’s 2022 election victory.

Labor whittled away Liberal primary vote from the 1998 election, when it fell below 50 per cent for the first time since 1974 (when a Liberal Movement candidate gathered 18 per cent of first preferences).

Labor then ploughed significant resources and prominent candidates, including Nicole Cornes and Annabel Digance, in unsuccessful bids to unseat Liberal Andrew Southcott.

Instead, he retired from politics at the 2016 election and was succeeded by Ms Flint.

Originally published as Labor has stormed to a stunning victory in the southwestern Adelaide seat of Boothby