No assumptions from Morrison as loss looms
By AAP
12:30pm May 18, 2019
Scott Morrison says he is making "no assumptions" as he stares down an election defeat.
The prime minister is likely to be booted from office after his eight-month stint when votes are tallied on Saturday night.
"I make no assumptions about tonight," he told reporters after casting his ballot in Sydney on Saturday.
"I don't take anyone's support in this country for granted. I look forward to seeing the votes as they are tallied up tonight and where we go from that point."
Mr Morrison is still refusing to say whether he will continue to lead the Liberals if the party falls short.
"This election is not about my future. It is about your future. It is about the people of Australia's future," he said.
"It is not about my aspirations or Bill Shorten's ambition, it is about the Australian people's aspiration."
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But the prime minister insists he is still energised after the frenetic five-week campaign.
"I am so up for this because the people of Australia have energised me so much and continue to," he said.
"That is why I will burn for them every single day in this job."
Flanked by wife Jenny and daughters Abbey and Lily, Mr Morrison was clearly thrilled to be back in the Sutherland Shire.
"This community means the world to me," he told reporters while local Liberal Party supporters watched on.
"Wherever you live in this country, home is the place that is always most dear to you."
Besides one or two protesters, the vast majority of the crowd at the Lilli Pilli Public School was equally excited to see him.
However, the celebratory atmosphere - complete with cakes and wood carvings - may be short-lived.
The final Newspoll of the campaign shows Labor edging ahead of the coalition by 51.5 to 48.5 per cent on a two-party preferred basis.
The result would deliver Opposition Leader Bill Shorten a majority government if replicated nationwide.
Both sides believe battles in 20 key marginal seats across the country are more likely to decide the result.
Mr Morrison spent his election morning campaigning in northern Tasmania, where the coalition is trying to take the marginal seats of Bass and Braddon from Labor.
The Morrison team has visited Tasmania twice in the final week, pointing to tightening internal polls that suggest they could snatch the electorates to offset expected losses in Victoria.
"Tasmania in significant ways is going to decide what happens in this election," Mr Morrison said.
More than four million Australians had pre-polled across the country before election day, setting a new record.
Mr Morrison hopes they have made their early decision in favour of the coalition.
There is one vote he can count on.
"I think you can guess how I voted today because I hear the local member is pretty good," he joked after casting his ballot.
Mr Morrison and wife Jenny sealed the vote with a kiss, before heading off to visit his parents Marion and John.
The couple will watch the results roll in at a Liberal Party function in Sydney on Saturday night, with Victoria and Western Australia shaping up as the key battleground states.