SYDNEY (Reuters) – The conservative Liberal National Party in Australia’s Queensland state was on track on Sunday to end almost a decade of centre-left Labor government, after a general election held on Saturday.
Votes were still being counted on Sunday, but a partial count showed the Liberal National Party was polling well at a primary vote of 41.9% with the governing Labor Party on 32.8%, according to the Electoral Commission of Queensland.
“Today Queenslanders voted for hope over fear, they have voted for a fresh start, and they have voted for a majority LNP (Liberal National Party) government,” the party’s leader David Crisafulli told supporters on Saturday night.
Crisafulli campaigned strongly on getting tough on crime, which he says is “out of control” in the state. Queensland recently weighed extending warrantless stop-and-searches by police after calls for greater public security.
Incumbent Labor Premier Steven Miles took the job from three-time election winner Annastacia Palaszczuk, who retired last year after governing the state since 2015.
(Reporting by Sam McKeith in Sydney, Editing by Franklin Paul)
