CANBERRA(London Post with AAP and ABC NEWS) BY Dr. Majid Khan -Labor says its candidate retained the top Arafura seat in this weekend’s by-election, with Manuel Brown winning the Northern Territory parliamentary seat.
Labor says Manuel Brown likely to win seat from Arafura
Voters spread from the Tiwi Islands to the west of Arnhem Land
Only about 58% of eligible voters vote
Mr. Brown secured his 66% of first-preference vote share, beating his Country Liberal Party (CLP) rival Leslie Tungatarum.
Prime Minister Natasha Files declared his victory on social media after a two-hour vote tally.
As a result, with 14 of his 25 seats in Parliament, the Labor government’s majority remains unchanged.
Of more than 5,500 voters, he only voted 58%, while Labor previously voted 4% ahead of him. Most votes were collected earlier this week as voting teams moved through voters to key communities in the Tiwi Islands and West Arnhem Land.
Neither party made specific campaign promises to Arafula voters, but promised to improve housing, health care and remote roads.
Labor tried to bring the issue to parliament in a federal referendum on Indigenous Voices, contrasting support for the Voices with various positions of his CLP.
The by-election was sparked by the sudden death of Labor MP Costa, a man from Tiwi, late last year.
Brown, also of Tiwi heritage, lives in the Parish of Maningrida, 500km east of Darwin.
NT Election Commissioner Ian Loganathan said turnout in the by-election was slightly higher than his 52.7% recorded in the previous general election in 2020.
Arafura Voters Outline By-Election Priorities
In top-end by-elections, locals are asked to choose between a party that supports the vote in parliament and a party that is bitterly divided over it.
By-elections usually have fewer voters than general elections, so the uptick is encouraging, he said. “But again, we’re starting at a very low base,” said Commissioner Ian Loganathan.
“I would have liked more people to participate in this election.”
