Following this, Turnbull declared victory for his conservative coalition in the closely fought general election.
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Australia’s prime minister says his conservative coalition will remain in power for a second three-year term following the country’s tight national election.
That includes changes to superannuation, which some conservatives have blamed for a backlash against the Coalition and reduced volunteers and donations during the election campaign.
Although he is expected to form a majority government, Turnbull’s gamble in calling the election backfired badly, with a swing to the center-left Labor opposition and a rise in the popularity of minor parties and independents.
Joyce will then meet with the prime minister on Wednesday.
“The most important people to thank are the Australian people because we have resolved this election”, Turnbull had said. The ruling coalition promised tax cuts for companies but higher taxes for those earning AUD$250,000 ($189,250) or more.
But less promising is Turnbull’s “day one” bid to overhaul workplace laws.
Doubts have been raised over the passage of government’s Australian Building and Construction Commission bill, which aims to re-establish a watchdog that monitors union activity in Australia’s building industry.
The nation has been politically paralyzed since the July 2 ballot failed to produce a clear victor, and electoral officials are still combing through postal votes to determine the final tally.
While final Senate results may not be known until August, anti-immigration politician Pauline Hanson is likely to hold at least three seats. “It is vital that this parliament works”, he said.
And Mr Shorten has pledged Labor would work with the Coalition where there was common ground between the parties.
The election also put Labor on notice.
Earlier, Shorten said although counting was still underway, it was clear that Turnbull would form the next either a minority or majority government.
Asked if Labor would push for a conscience vote, Shorten said: “Let’s see what we do when we get back to parliament”.
“I also want to acknowledge the new members.
And as I said, I wish Malcolm Turnbull well in what the future holds”, he said. “We are united, we have found our voice”, he wrote.
The Prime Minister said his granddaughter Isla was on his lap when he took Mr Shorten’s concession call, and he was “deeply, deeply touched” by the moment.
“There were eight crossbenchers in the last Senate”.
Despite coming out on top of the polls, the coalition was expected to fare better than it did, prompting calls from within the Liberal Party for Turnbull to step down. “It shouldn’t be taking eight days to find out who has won”.
Turnbull had used the days prior to shore up support from crossbenchers.
‘The Labor party will stick true to its core values. An estimated nine crossbenchers – some of them from the far right – and about the same number of senators from the left-wing Australian Greens will have pivotal votes on legislation.
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Both Mr Turnbull’s ruling Liberal/National coalition and Labor remain short of the 76 seats needed to claim a majority in the 150-seat House of Representatives, with counting still ongoing.
