Former Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) president Ged Kearney has helped Labor snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in the federal seat of Batman. With the Liberals not fielding a candidate in Batman, the by-election was a test of whether the Greens' march into inner-metropolitan seats would continue, or if Labor could successfully appeal to a younger demographic. Labor wins the Batman by-election, upsetting the Greens who were the favourites to win the inner-Melbourne seat and have now blamed preferences deals between Labor and "hard-right" parties for their defeat.
Ged Kearney retains the Batman Division for the Australian Labor Party, despite earlier predictions that the Australian Greens would win.