Two Indigenous women on opposite sides of the political spectrum look set to represent the Northern Territory in the Senate.
Labor and the Country Liberals, as expected, have secured the bulk of first preference votes in the contest for the NT's two Upper House spots.
It means Labor Senator Malarndirri McCarthy is predicted to retain her seat, with the Country Liberals candidate Jacinta Nampijinpa Price all but certain of joining her in Canberra.
For Ms McCarthy — a Yanyuwa woman from the Gulf region who entered the Senate in 2016 — it will be her first experience as a member of a Labor government.
She said incoming prime minister Anthony Albanese's commitment to embrace the Uluru Statement from the Heart was particularly important.
"I'm incredibly excited by the opportunity that federal Labor will have now to ensure that we do have [an Indigenous] Voice enshrined in the constitution to the Australian parliament," she said at a Labor election party in Darwin on Saturday night.
Once the election results are finalised, Ms McCarthy said Labor's First Nations caucus members would get together to ensure a referendum on an Indigenous Voice takes place as soon as possible.
"There's no doubt there is a great sense of relief, but also vindication for federal Labor that our hard work, certainly since 2019, to bring the policies that matter to all Australians need to now be adhered to and acted on quite quickly."
'The bulldog in me is not going to stop'
Ms Price — a Warlpiri-Celtic woman and former deputy mayor of Alice Springs — said Australians had been "taken for a ride" by The Greens and others on the left side of politics.
"And they're going to soon find out what bed they have made for themselves," she told a CLP gathering in Alice Springs.
She said it was "concerning" Labor had been swept into office and that "Australia needs us now more than ever".
In 2019, Ms Price ran an unsuccessful campaign to dislodge Labor veteran Warren Snowdon from his Lower House seat of Lingiari, which has the country's highest proportion of First Nations voters.
On Saturday, she levelled criticism at Mr Snowdon, who retired ahead of this year's election.
"He sat there for 30 bloody years … with the people who are the most marginalised in this country, in his electorate, and he's done bugger all for them," she said.
"There's still people in the bush suffering. So there's still a hell of a lot of work to be done."
Mr Snowdon dismissed Ms Price's criticism.
"I don't regard what she has said as having any credibility," he said.
"She contested the federal election against me in 2019 and was resoundingly defeated.
"I would make the observation that it's the last decade that the Liberals have been in power and it failed First Nations people across the country, most particularly in the NT."
Sam McMahon currently fourth on first preferences
Last year, Ms Price was pre-selected as the CLP's Senate candidate after winning a battle against former Senator Sam McMahon.
Dr McMahon later joined the Liberal Democrats to run for the Senate in this year's election.
Her new party is currently fourth on first preferences, behind The Greens and ahead of the Legalise Cannabis Australia party.
