Labor candidate for Bass Ross Hart yesterday offered his congratulations to Bass MHR Bridget Archer, but has said he would consider running for a fourth time.
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"I'll consider that in the fullness of time. I have put my hand up to serve in Tasmania on three occasions, not because I need a job but because I've got a commitment to Northern Tasmania," Mr Hart said.
He said he had not yet contacted Ms Archer directly, but was extremely proud of the campaign that his team had run in Northern Tasmania, citing policies around healthcare and delivering jobs to the region's energy sector as notable.
"We just fell short, but it was an extremely vigorous campaign undertaken in good faith, with good cheer, in a good manner to deliver the best here for Northern Tasmania," he said.
"It's certainly bittersweet. It's also an emotional occasion to see my good friend Anthony Albanese elected as Prime Minister," he said.
Despite losing, Mr Hart said he still believed in the commitments made during the campaign, and looked forward to seeing an Albanese government work towards improving healthcare in the northern region.
After a close campaign, the electorate of Bass has yet to be officially called but is now impossible for Labor to win, marking Northern Tasmania as an outlier in the nationally predicted 3.5 per cent swing to the ALP.
Ms Archer retained her seat with a 0.72 per cent swing to the LNP. Her two-party preferred count currently sits at 51 per cent, a slight increase on her victory in 2019.
Asked why Labor had failed to replicate the gains made on the mainland, Mr Hart said that an examination of the causes would be made in the future, and could not speculate on it so close to the election.
Despite signalling that she is considering senior leadership positions in the Liberal party after the loss of several senior members, Ms Archer will now face the challenges of being in office as part of the opposition.
"Being in office in opposition is sometimes lonely. There will be commitments that are rolled out within your electorate that you don't necessarily have a role in delivering," he said.
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