Liberal candidate Fiona Kotvojs has conceded defeat in the Eden-Monaro byelection, saying the result is “now clear” five days after polling day.
While the Labor candidate and former Bega Valley mayor Kristy McBain claimed victory on Sunday, Kotvojs had delayed conceding because of the closeness of the contest and the possibility postal votes may alter the result.
But Kotvojs said on Thursday evening that with only 1,000 to 2,000 votes still yet to be counted, the result was “now clear”.
“I have spoken with Kristy McBain and congratulated her on being elected as the member for Eden-Monaro,” she said in a Facebook post.
“I wish Kristy and her family all the best as she takes on this new role.”
The Australian Electoral Commission’s figures show McBain is leading Kotvojs 50.39% to 49.61% after the distribution of preferences, a margin of 730 votes. The Liberal party attracted a two-party-preferred swing of 0.46% but that was not enough to take back the seat from Labor following the retirement of popular local member Mike Kelly.
Kotvojs fell short despite significant efforts by the government to get her over the line in the closing stages of the campaign.
Scott Morrison announced federal approval for the Snowy 2.0 project in the final week of the campaign at a media conference where he was introduced by Kotvojs. The pair also appeared together at a press conference to promote increased defence spending flowing from a major strategic update.
Kotvojs faced scrutiny during the campaign over her history of downplaying the human contribution to global heating. She submitted to the bushfire royal commission in April that governments cannot address heat as a cause of bushfires so must focus on managing fuel loads instead. Kotvojs also faced scrutiny for urging her local council to push forward with a controversial new rural land plan.
In her concession statement on Thursday, Kotvojs paid tribute to Morrison and his government “for the leadership they are providing Australia at this extraordinary time”. She also thanked Morrison and the NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, and their teams for campaigning with her over the past few weeks.
Kotvojs said 2020 had been “a horrific year for all of us” – citing bushfires, flooding, drought and Covid-19 – and she called on everyone to “support each other regardless of difference”.
“While not elected, for me, it was a privilege to stand as the Liberal candidate for Eden-Monaro; to seek the opportunity to represent, and work for, the people of our community,” she said.
“As you can appreciate, I put much on hold for the campaign, so I’m looking forward to returning to some normality and spending time with my husband, family and friends. As I said, this community shaped who I am and I will always fight for it, but right now I have some fencing to do.”
The campaign was also characterised by tensions between the Liberal and National parties.
John Barilaro, the NSW Nationals leader and deputy premier, said this week that the “real winner” was the community because it had elected “a fantastic local member in Kristy McBain”.
Barilaro has also rubbished claim from some Liberals that the strong primary vote swing against Labor spelled trouble for opposition leader Anthony Albanese’s electoral prospects. Morrison said in an interview earlier this week that a protest vote against the government had not eventuated.
Barilaro said: “You’ve got a very popular prime minister whose personal brand you would assume would carry the Liberal party over, but there’s a disconnect.”
