South Australian MP Adrian Pederick, who represents the mid-Murray seat for Hammond in the House of Assembly, is optimistic that when the final tally is calculated, he will retain his re-shaped seat.
Pederick appeared on the Flow to discuss his views on how Saturday’s state election unfolded. In his own seat, the Hammond MP fell from a 52 per cent primary vote in 2018 to 39.3 per cent.
The Liberal Party member said he was confident of prevailing from the race for his seat despite the party’s dismal collective showing.
“It’s been a rough election for the Liberal Party, but I’m hoping the count keeps coming my way.”
“For whatever reason, the Electoral Commission in its wisdom did a two-party preferred vote between first and third candidates (himself and independent Airlie Keen) on the weekend, but that still has me ahead by about 19 votes.”
Hear the full interview with Adrian Pederick on the Flow podcast player:
Pederick tried clarifying his current scenario as counting on the vote continues.
“My understanding is that between me and Labor, who came second, there was about 56.7 [two-party-preferred result] towards me, but there’s counting still going on today, there’s pre-polls going on today, they did a two party-preferred count between number two and me yesterday, which is the proper one ... I don’t know where that landed because for whatever reason that couldn’t or wasn’t loaded up, so I don’t know whether it’s been loaded since.”
“But I do know that pre-poll votes are underway today in Murray Bridge and as far as looking as where that all landed, we’ve just got to wait and see.”
Pederick held the title of Government Whip in the South Australian House of Assembly prior to Saturday’s election.
His hold on the seat became more tenuous when, as a member of the government, the Electoral Boundaries Commission redistributed voters such that northern neighbour Chaffey took the Mallee towns. In return, Mr Pederick's seat of Hammond took in more towns on the western side of the Murray River that had previously leant towards the Labor Opposition.
Meanwhile, Mr Pederick's hometown of Coomandook shifted out of his own electorate into southern neighbour Mackillop, convincingly retained by Mr Pederick's Liberal colleague, Nick McBride.
The Liberal Party comprehensively lost Saturday's state election, ousted to become a one-term government. SA Labor looks likely to take 27 of the 47 seats in the House of Assembly, the Liberals 15 and Independents 5.
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