Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is projected to be the likely victor of the election by a handful of votes, a polling analyst and the opposition leader said Friday.
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Mr Shorten, speaking at an ALP caucus meeting in Canberra on Friday, said it was “likely in the coming days” the coalition will “scrape over the line”.
ABC colleague Antony Green was equally as hesitant to declare a majority government was probable; he said he did “not particularly” expect the government to win 76 seats in its own right despite a number of electorates showing large swings to the coalition thanks to the arrival of postal votes.
His victory speech on Sunday afternoon came just hours after Australia’s opposition leader Bill Shorten rang him to concede defeat.
He said he agreed to support the government because he did not believe the opposition centre-left Labor Party could form a minority government and he did not want to force Australians to go back to the polls.
The electoral commission put the coalition ahead in 74 seats, Labor in 71, and the minor parties and independents in five.
The surge in voting for independents, combined with rules that make it easier for smaller parties to win Senate seats in a so-called double dissolution of parliament, will likely make it impossible for Turnbull to push through policies including a A$50 billion ($37.19 billion) corporate tax break over 10 years.
Labor holds a slim lead in the four closest undecided seats but this is being cut back as counting continues.
The Australia dollar fell half a USA cent after S&P’s announcement, which cited concerns the coalition government would be hampered in its plans to return to budget surplus as it struggles to form a majority government.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said he accepts responsibility for the government’s mediocre performance, with more than 20 coalition MPs losing their seats at the poll.
“While maintaining my complete independence, I am prepared to contribute to the stability of the 45th parliament by continuing with my past practice of supporting the government of the day”, Ms McGowan said.
The Coalition appears to have won the seat of Chisholm in Melbourne – previously held by the Labor Speaker of the House of Representatives Anna Burke who retired at this election – holding a lead of 1395 votes over the Liberals late on Wednesday.
Yesterday, Queensland MP Bob Katter was the first to say he’d support Turnbull.
The close result surprised many analysts, who thought the coalition would retain key marginal seats. Turnbull needs 76 seats to form a majority government.
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But the millionaire former banker and barrister also attacked his Labor opponents, accusing them of a dishonest scare campaign targeting the nation’s universal healthcare system which he said amounted to a “shocking lie”.
