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SYDNEY (Reuters) – While the count of a crucial Australian by-election has infiltrated Sunday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has been faced with the possibility that his Liberal party has been too promising to concede a contest that would report to his government from a minority government.
FILE PHOTO: Australian Treasurer, Scott Morrison, speaking during an interview with Reuters at the G20 Finance Ministers Meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentina, July 22, 2018. REUTERS / Marcos Brindicci
Morrison became Australia's sixth prime minister in 10 years in August, after his predecessor, Malcolm Turnbull, was the victim of internal Liberal quarrels.
On Saturday, Morrison had given up the seat, previously held by Turnbull, after the previous count revealed a gap of more than 20% over the Liberals. But with a quarter of the ballots remaining on Sunday, the Liberal candidate had only 900 votes late. [nL3N1X005F]
The contest attracted the attention of the international community after Morrison's belated attempt to gain the support of Jewish voters, who represented 13 percent of Wentworth voters, by suggesting that Australia recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. and move his embassy from Tel Aviv.
The impact of this maneuver was unclear, but with his parliamentary majority hanging on a thread as the count went on, Morrison acknowledged that regardless of the outcome, voters were clearly disillusioned with his party. .
"The gap has been reduced by several hundred votes. There are still many postal votes to consider, "Morrison told reporters in Sydney. "But that said, Liberal voters yesterday expressed their anger."
Morrison said that if the vote came close to 100 votes, an automatic recount would be triggered, giving his conservative coalition a slim chance to retain his majority of seats in Parliament.
The poor results of the Liberals were in part due to Wentworth voters' disillusionment with how party rebels had thrown Turnbull, Morrison said.
If the Liberals lose by-elections, the Morrison government will likely have to rely on independent legislators to survive in the coming months, with a general election scheduled for next May.
Kerryn Phelps, the independent candidate who ran the bid for Wentworth, offered a cold comfort to the ruling coalition.
"All governments should continue their mandates unless there are exceptional circumstances," Phelps told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation on Sunday.
Edited by Simon Cameron-Moore
