Federal election 2019: Victoria’s regional seats winners

WHILE the Sunshine State shone for the Coalition on Saturday night, Victoria proved to be the state of electoral swings and roundabouts. Here’s what happened in regional Victoria.

WHILE the Sunshine State shone for the Coalition on Saturday night, Victoria proved to be the state of electoral swings and roundabouts:

VIEW EACH SEAT AND SWING HERE (pdf)

BALLARAT

In a dismal night for federal Labor, Ballarat MP Catherine King achieved a 4.9 per cent primary vote swing for the ALP. Liberal candidate Tim Vo bucked the national trend with a 3.7 per cent decline for the Coalition vote on 31 per cent.

BENDIGO

Much like the 2018 state election result in Bendigo, Labor recorded a strong primary vote swing in its favour.

Labor MP Lisa Chesters now holds the seat on a comfortable 9.2 per cent two-party preferred margin with Liberal challenger Sam Gayed not helped by the lack of a National Party boost.

CORANGAMITE

Liberal MP Sarah Henderson is on track to lose the ultra-marginal seat to Labor challenger and former Surf Coast mayor Libby Coker, with both sides waiting for 14,500 ­postal votes to be counted.

The surprise performer in the primary vote was independent candidate Damien Cole, an environmental activist whose preferences mainly flowed back to Labor.

EDEN-MONARO

Labor backbencher Mike Kelly is clinging on to the former bellwether seat with his thin margin now razor sharp. Liberal challenger Fiona Kotvojs came within a whisker of taking the seat, reflecting the nat­ional swing to the Coalition in marginal constituencies. Nat­ionals candidate Sophie Wade came fourth behind the Greens.

FARRER

A close result was tipped by the pundits but Liberal MP Sussan Ley easily fended off an independent challenge from Albury mayor Kevin Mack. The former health minister won the huge Murray-Darling seat on first preferences alone at 50.9 per cent to Mr Mack on 21 per cent.

GIPPSLAND

Veterans Affairs Minister Darren Chester easily won his fifth race for Gippsland, experiencing only a small swing against both his primary and two-party preferred figures. Shooters Party candidate David Snelling was the surprise contender on the evening, polling nearly 7 per cent in the primary vote tally.

INDI

Helen Haines has made history as the first independent candidate to succeed an independent MP since Federation. Liberal candidate Steve Martin won the primary vote count at 35 per cent with Dr Haines second at 33.3 per cent. Nationals candidate and Wodonga mayor Mark Byatt gained just 9.8 per cent of first preferences.

MALLEE

Mildura social worker Anne Webster is the Mallee’s new representative in Canberra, replacing former assistant minister Andrew Broad.

Dr Webster secured 29.5 per cent of the primary vote, nearly half of the National Party’s 2016 result in the seat, due in part to Liberal challenger Serge Petrovich, who gained 17.6 per cent.

MCEWEN

Labor MP Rob Mitchell has kept the seat just out of marginal territory with a negligible two-party preferred swing to the Coalition.

Liberal candidate Phillip Fusco was late to the race for the North-Central Victorian seat but managed to bump up the Coalition’s primary vote to 34.3 per cent.

MONASH

Liberal MP Russell Broadbent easily retained the rebranded West Gippsland constituency. Mr Broadbent is one of the federal parliament’s longest serving MPs, having originally won the Corinella electorate at the 1990 federal election.

NICHOLLS

Former AFL coach Damian Drum may no longer have the safest Coalition seat in the country but his electoral buffer comes pretty close.

The lack of a Liberal challenger boosted his primary vote by nearly 20 per cent on his 2016 result, when he switched from Spring St to Canberra.

RIVERINA

National Party leader Michael McCormack was on shaky ground as Deputy PM pre-election but Saturday night he strengthened his arm, achieving a swing to the junior Coalition partner.

WANNON

Education Minister Dan Tehan comfortably won a fourth term with more than 51 per cent of the primary vote. The Liberal MP won nearly all Wannon booths, with big swings in Warrnambool and rural booths, except in the Ararat-Stawell region, where Labor challenger Maurice Billi was based.