NSW upper house results in, Liberals gain final seat

By ERIN MODARO

The distribution preferences for NSW’s Upper house are in with Liberal candidate Rachel Merton winning the final seat. Candidates needed a quota of 1/22, or 4.5% of the vote to be elected to the Legislative Council.

The final seats are determined by preference flows and remaining votes, which is why election results take longer than the lower house which is called quickly in comparison.

The final seat was a contest between the Coalition’s seventh candidate, Rachel Merton, and the candidate from the Animal Justice Party, Alison Waters- the results of which would determine whether there was slight left majority in the upper house with 22 vs 20 seats, or an even split down political lines with 21 vs 21.

Now Merton is in, the NSW upper house is evenly divided between left and right wing parties.

Labor has won seats for 8 new members gaining one extra this election, the Coalition has 7, the Greens have 2, and One Nation, Liberal Democrats and Shooters, Fishers and Farmers each have one.

The Animal Justice Party, having missed out on the final seat, now has no representation in the upper house.

Minor parties first time in upper house

Several minor parties will make their debut on the Legislative Council, with Former Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham winning a seat for the Legalise Cannabis Party. The Liberal Democrats have also won a seat for the first time, as John Ruddick found success in the polls.

Back in on a technical re-election is One Nation’s Mark Latham, who resigned mid-term from his 8-year term on the Legislative Council in March only to run again this election.

Robert Borsak, leader of the Shooter, Fishers and Farmers party has retained his seat, although with a swing away from the party.