Australian election: Labor leader Bill Shorten concedes, resigns after shock defeat to conservatives
- The result is a monumental upset and a failure of pollsters, who put the opposition Labor party in pole position
- But it is unclear whether the conservative coalition can govern with an outright majority and final results may not be known this weekend
“How good is Australia!”, shouted a jubilant Morrison, who came to office just nine months ago in a party coup against his moderate predecessor, Malcolm Turnbull.
While it remained unclear if Morrison’s Liberal party and their rural-based National party partners would win enough seats to form a majority government, the leader of the main opposition Labor party conceded defeat shortly before midnight.
“It is obvious that Labor will not be able to form the next government”, Bill Shorten told stunned supporters in Melbourne.
“In the national interest, a short while ago I called Scott Morrison to congratulate him,” Shorten said, adding that he would also stand down as leader of his party in the wake of its shock defeat.
The result was a monumental upset and a failure by pollsters, who had for months predicted a comfortable victory for Labor after six years in the opposition.