Labor’s candidate for Macnamara,Josh Burns,had been in a close race against the Greens’ candidate Steph Hodgins-May and the Liberals’ Colleen Harkin since the May 21 election.
Counting on Monday evening showed Harkin getting in front of Hodgins-May on the back of preferences from minor parties including the United Australia Party and Pauline Hanson’s One Nation.
Burns had won 31.8 per cent of the primary vote,a one per cent improvement on his 2019 result with Hodgins-May narrowly behind on 29.7 per cent – a lift of 5.5 per cent – and Harkin on 29.1 per cent,which was a near 10 per cent fall.
But with just 2600 votes left,the AEC showed the contest was between Burns and Harkin to take Macnamara,which includes much of Melbourne’s inner south-eastern suburbs.
After preferences,Burns was in front 62.3 per cent to Harkin’s 37.7 per cent,a swing to Labor of 7.4 per cent.
A win in Macnamara gives Labor a majority government,its first majority on the floor of the House of Representatives since Labor’s 2007 election victory with Kevin Rudd as leader.