WA VOTES: Roger Cook has been elected Western Australian Premier, leading WA Labor to a third consecutive election win which will extend its tenure at Dumas House to at least 12 years.
WA VOTES: Roger Cook has been elected Western Australian Premier, leading WA Labor to a third consecutive election win which will extend its tenure at Dumas House to at least 12 years.
In a widely expected result, Labor has defeated the Liberal and Nationals parties to retain government – a result declared just after 8pm with around 18 per cent of the vote counted.
With 19 per cent of the vote counted, Labor has won 41.8 per cent of the first party statewide vote – an 18.1 per cent swing against.
But the Liberal Party WA has 27.7 per cent of the vote, with a 6.4 per cent swing in its favour.
The Greens have performed strongly, attracting 12 per cent of the first party vote – a 5.1 per cent swing in its advantage.
The full makeup of the parliament remains to be decided, but the Liberal Party WA faces an uphill battle to win a suite of key seats it had entered the ballot confident of regaining.
In a rare plus it has flipped Carine, with rising star Liam Staltari defeating the Labor incumbent Paul Lilburne. Nedlands also looks to have been regained, courtesy of Jonathan Huston.
The Churchlands electorate where Basil Zempilas has run a loud campaign is on a knife's edge at time of writing.
Meanwhile the numbers say Labor will win government, a first under Roger Cook – who assumed the mantle of Premier from Mark McGowan following his resignation in May 2023.
Speaking at the polling booth this morning, Mr Cook said he would be honoured to win an election as party leader.
“The opportunity to be endorsed by the people of Western Australia is an honour and a privilege, and it’s one that I take very seriously,” he said this morning.
Mr Cook fronted party faithful at 9.20pm, telling them his party would not take the result for granted.
In an emphatic victory speech he committed to continue his party's push to increase manufacturing in WA, and vowed to focus on cost of living relief while thanking the party's volunteers and outgoing members.
“Enjoy tonight, because tomorrow we get back to work, putting together a new government that builds upon everything that we have achieved together to date that tackles our challenges with determination,” he told party faithful.
Liberal Libby Mettam has called Mr Cook to congratulate him on his electoral success, and told ABC her future was a matter for the party room.
Mr Cook did not wait for Ms Mettam's concession speech to finish at a WA Liberal gathering before he took to the stage.
Play-by-play analysis of this evening's vote count can be found here.
