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As the count from a crucial Australian by-election dragged into Sunday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison faced the possibility that his Liberal party may have been too quick to concede a contest that would reduce his administration to a minority government. MorrAustralia stares at hung parliament as by-election count goes to the wire
As the count from a crucial Australian by-election dragged into Sunday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison faced the possibility that his Liberal party may have been too quick to concede a contest that would reduce his administration to a minority government. Morrison became Australia's sixth prime minister in 10 years in August after his predecessor Malcolm Turnbull fell victim to infighting among the Liberals, and the suspense over the count in Sydney's affluent Wentworth constituency was in keeping with the unpredictable politics of recent times. On Saturday, Morrison had surrendered the seat, vacated following Turnbull's retirement from politics, after the early count showed a swing of more than 20 percent away from the Liberals. But by Sunday evening, his candidate trailed an independent rival by 1,600 votes with several thousand votes still to be counted, the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) said. Still claiming victory, but sounding less sure, the independent candidate Kerryn Phelps described the wait for the result as a «white knuckle ride» in a post on her Twitter account. «Holding our breath for the AEC outcome,» she tweeted. Should the Liberals lose Wentworth,... Read more