Chris Minns will be the next Premier of NSW after voters savaged the Liberal Party in seats across Sydney, paving the way for Labor to govern in its own right for the first time in 12 years.
According to ABC News, NSW Labor will hold at least 47 seats in the 93-member lower house, picking up at least nine seats from the Coalition.
Labor’s gains included key seats in Western Sydney, such as Parramatta and Penrith. The nine seats still in doubt include former Premier Gladys Berejiklian’s former seat of Willoughby in Sydney.
Goulburn, Holsworthy, Kiama, Miranda, Oatley, Pittwater, Winston Hills and Wollondilly are also too close to call.
Minns arrived at the Novotel at Brighton-Le-Sands on Saturday night to address elated Labor supporters and was introduced by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Minns said Labor’s victory provided a mandate to remove the Coalition’s “unfair” public sector wages cap and change the state’s constitution to prevent any possible future sale of Sydney Water.
“We will govern for everyone in NSW,” Minns said.
“We know that the challenges are huge, we know that the responsibilities are awesome, but NSW Labor is back and ready to govern in this great state.”
At about 9pm, outgoing NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet called Minns to concede defeat before arriving at the Liberal Party’s campaign function at the Hilton hotel in Sydney’s CBD just before 10pm.
Joined by wife Helen, Perrottet praised Minns for his “decency and integrity” before confirming that he would stand down as Liberal leader.
Source: ABC News and The Sydney Morning Herald.
