Anthony Albanese who grew up in public housing appeared visibly emotional as he addressed supporters in his victory speech. auspol AnthonyAlbanese Election2022
The nation's new leader has promised a"better future" for Australians after winning the election, but still faces the prospect of a hung parliament as votes continue to be counted.
Mr Albanese paid tribute to his mother, Maryanne, who was a disability pensioner saying he hoped his personal journey could "inspire Australians to reach for the stars"."I want to seek our common purpose and promote unity and not fear - optimism, not fear and division.” The current makeup of the House of Representatives is Labor with 68 seats, the Liberals and Nationals 46, possibly three seats for the Greens and six for independents as of midnight.
“We've seen in our own politics a great deal of disruption as the way people have voted today with major parties having one of the lowest primary votes we've ever seen,” he said.Female independent candidates mounted a devastating blow to the Morrison government’s chance to be re-elected unseating Liberal MPs in key seats previously considered heartlands for the party.
Liberal Jason Falinski’s Sydney seat of Mackellar also fell to independent Kylea Tink, while Liberal Tim Wilson lost to independent candidate Zoe Daniels. ”We need to get the Liberal Party back in touch with the values of those constituencies,” he said on the ABC’s election coverage.