NSW election results 2023 LIVE updates: Chris Minns to form majority Labor government; Dominic Perrottet resigns as Liberal leader – Sydney Morning Herald

Premier-elect Chris Minns was elected to NSW parliament in March 2015, four years into the Coalition’s 12-year reign in the state, and holds the southern Sydney seat of Kogarah.

The 43-year-old former firefighter is a one-time assistant secretary of the NSW branch of the ALP and served as chief of staff to former Labor leader John Robertson when Robertson was minister for energy, environment and corrective services.

Minns was elected unopposed as leader of the opposition in June 2021 after rival Michael Daley pulled out of the leadership race. It was Minns’ third tilt at the leadership.

In his victory speech last night, Minns delivered “a huge thank you to the trade union movement of NSW”, describing them as “men and women who put the interests of working people front and centre in this election campaign”.

“We thank you for your solidarity, hard work and commitment to your members, thank you so much,” he said.

In his inaugural speech in parliament, Minns said: “Trade unions are integral to both our success and our heritage, but Labor also needs to represent those who are not in a trade union.

“Exceptional trade unionists fight every day for working people but sometimes – particularly at the conclusion of Labor’s last term in office – they are shackled by an association within our tribe. In the long term, a more balanced split in the make-up of Labor will be better both for the party and for our hardworking trade unions.”

Minns said in his inaugural speech that he was the “fourth Labor Party member in a row to represent the electorate of Kogarah”.

“I was never interested in politics; I was only ever interested in the Labor Party. My interest in public policy is driven and directed by the pantomime of Labor history. Labor’s heroes and the Liberals’ villains shaped my understanding of complicated public policy problems.

“I still remember the 1993 federal election when all had given up on Labor except Paul Keating and my dad. For three years my father was considered a genius amongst family and friends for having predicted that Labor would win the sweetest victory of all.”

Outgoing Premier Dominic Perrottet described this election campaign as a “race to the top” and a “genuine battle of ideas”, while Premier-elect Chris Minns described it as “a model of respect and civility”.

But it was still an election campaign, and some tactics are time-honoured.

Both major parties ran the standard, if low-level, attack ads on their opponents.

In seats such as Balmain, in Sydney’s inner west, a former Labor heartland now held by the Greens, a vote for the Greens was styled by Labor as a vote for the Coalition, with the tag line: “Don’t risk Perrottet.”

Meanwhile, the Liberals said Minns had “no plan, no energy [and] no experience” and warned voters not to “let NSW stall” under a Labor government.

Black and white photos of the leaders are a must in any self-respecting attack ad, although it must be said that Labor chose a particularly non-threatening shot of a beaming Perrottet.

The Greens’ Kobi Shetty won the seat of Balmain last night, beating Labor’s Philippa Scott.

Shetty’s election follows the retirement of Greens MP Jamie Parker.

Labor had warned in Scott’s election flyers that “this election will be very close and Labor must win Balmain to change the government”.

Outgoing Premier Dominic Perrottet and Premier-elect Chris Minns have won plaudits for their gracious approach to defeat and victory respectively, after both delivered speeches last night heaping praise on their opponent.

Former federal Labor minister Craig Emerson had this to say:

There was praise from many other quarters, including high-profile lawyer and human rights advocate Nyadol Nyuon:

And University of Canberra Professor Chris Wallace had this to say:

Just as in the Victorian election in November, it’s possible that no “teal” independent candidates will be successful in NSW, Anthony Galloway writes in an analysis piece here, although there are still some seats that are too close to call.

“It may suggest that the donation caps in Victoria and NSW have hampered the ability of teals to get elected. With the Albanese government to legislate its own spending cap, teal MPs will have to deal with this problem at the next federal election,” Galloway writes.

“It may also suggest that rather than the Liberals facing an existential crisis in the inner city, last year’s teal wave at the federal level could have been driven by the Morrison government’s tone and policies.”

As state political reporter Alex Smith has reported, outgoing NSW Treasurer Matt Kean is favoured to be opposition leader after Dominic Perrottet stood down as parliamentary leader of the Liberal Party following the Coalition’s electoral defeat.

But Smith writes that any bid by the moderate powerbroker will likely face a challenge from Sports Minister Alister Henskens. Attorney-General Mark Speakman could also emerge as a leadership contender, she writes, although it is unlikely he has enough support.

Kean was grilled on the ABC last night about his leadership ambition but stuck to the script that it was “too early for those discussions”.

“I haven’t thought about it,” he said, although he agreed he was committed to stay in parliament for the full four-year term.

“There are a lot of talented people in the Liberal Party, definitely something that we can build on. Dominic has made sure that people have had experience, they will be able to contribute. I would like to continue to contribute to the team,” he said.

“Seeing what he [Perrottet] has had to carry does make you think about the impact that it does have on your family, it makes you think about the impact it has on you. I was a junior minister when Gladys Berejiklian was the premier, during that campaign, and now I have been my Dominic’s side during this journey, I have seen how demanding the job is.

“Let me tell you, Dom has put everything into this.”

“The NSW election was perched on a knife edge late last night, with up to five seats too close to call,” The Sun-Herald reported on March 26, 1995.

But the then NSW opposition leader, Bob Carr, was confident.

“Uttering the words ‘just call me The Comeback Kid,’ Mr Carr made what amounted to an unofficial declaration of victory,” the newspaper said.

Twenty-eight years to the day later, Labor has once again won an election from opposition and this time the result is clear: the ALP, led by Chris Minns, has returned to power in NSW after 12 years and will form a majority government.

Premier-elect Chris Minns adopted a lower key style in his victory speech in Sydney last night.

“We know that the challenges are huge, the responsibilities are awesome, but NSW Labor is back and ready to govern in this great state,” he said.

You can watch Minns’ full speech here.

Both major parties made spending commitments in the billions during the NSW election campaign. Now Labor will form government, and premier-in-waiting Chris Minns has plenty to deliver.

Cost of living was at the forefront of the campaign as soaring household bills, interest rates and inflation heaped pressure on voters. Housing was also a key election issue, while there were significant announcements on investments in healthcare, education, gambling reform and transport and infrastructure – among a raft of other measures.

Take a look at the major Labor promises from the campaign, and what you should expect Minns and his team to deliver.

NSW Labor attracted criticism for its policy on poker machine reform, which was noticeably weaker than the Liberals’ plan.

Outgoing premier Dominic Perrottet had committed to introducing a statewide cashless gambling card while Minns committed only to a trial of the cards at 500 poker machines in metropolitan and regional NSW.

The 500 pokies included in the trial represent less than one per cent of the state’s 90,000 machines, Tom Rabe and Lucy Cormack reported earlier this year.

The Perrottet government had said the cashless gaming cards would include mandatory self-imposed limits and would ban the transfer of funds from credit cards and automatic top-ups.