Tasmanian Liberals secure majority in 2021 state election, winning 13th seat

On Wednesday evening, the distribution of preferences in the Southern electorate of Clark drew to a close, with the 13th seat required for a Liberal majority falling to former Labor member Madeleine Ogilvie.

Liberal MHA Elise Archer had already been re-elected in Clark, attracting 10,626 votes, while Greens leader Cassy O'Connor and Labor frontbencher Ella Haddad also easily retained their seats.

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Premier Peter Gutwein had pledged to resign as Liberal leader if his party couldn't secure a majority.

But in a statement released on Wednesday night, Mr Gutwein was celebrating the fact the Liberals had secured a third consecutive term of majority government.

"And we have done it with an outstanding statewide result, including swings to the Liberal Party in Bass, Braddon and Lyons," he said.

"We have laid out a clear plan to secure Tasmania's future, and I thank Tasmanians for showing faith in my government and providing me the privilege of being your Premier and I will not let Tasmanians down.

"We will continue building on our strong economic position, so we can create more jobs and ensure we have the skills and training pathways Tasmanians need.

"This will allow us to continue investing strongly in health, in education and in housing, and to continue delivering our record infrastructure program, which is building better and safer communities.

Mr Gutwein said the Liberals would now wait for the finalisation of counting later this week, followed by the declaration of the polls.

Ms Ogilvie, who previously sat as an independent after being elected on a count-back in 2019, said she was "humbled" to have been elected as the second Liberal in Clark, "helping to deliver a majority to the Gutwein government".

"First and foremost I would like to thank the voters of Clark for again placing their trust in me," she said. "I have always sought to place the people of Clark first, and this will not change moving forward."

"I am also incredibly grateful for the trust that the Premier and the Liberal Party placed in me. Premier Gutwein is an outstanding leader who has pulled off a remarkable and well-deserved victory."

The voters of Clark, which covers metropolitan Hobart, will also elect their first independent representative since the size of the House of Assembly was reduced from 35 seats to 25 in 1998, with Kristie Johnston, the popular mayor of Glenorchy, winning of the last two seats up for grabs.

Dr Bonham said there were several independents elected to the lower house prior to the reduction of the size of the parliament, but Ms Johnston was the first to be elected since the reform was implemented.

"Some of them were the forerunners of the Greens, but [there were] also others that were not, like Doug Lowe and Bruce Goodluck, and some others going back further," he said.

Meanwhile, in Bass, Labor is still waiting for final confirmation that Launceston councillor and former mayor Janie Finlay will win a second seat there for the party, with Michelle O'Byrne set to be re-elected. Labor currently has 1.73 quotas in the electorate, with Ms Finlay sitting on 7318 votes as at 5.20pm on Wednesday.

In Lyons, Liberal MHA Mark Shelton was re-elected, while Dr Bonham said Mr Shelton's Liberal colleague John Tucker would also retain his seat.

Greens MHA Rosalie Woodruff was able to hold on to her seat in Franklin, where the Liberals and Labor also each kept their seats in the electorate.

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