Albany decides: polling day update

UPDATE 09:45pm

Terry Redman looks set to increase his margin to about 8 per cent in Warren-Blackwood.

UPDATE 7:50pm

Peter Watson has taken a commanding lead early in the vote count and looks set to claim the seat of Albany for a fifth straight election.

At this stage there has been a approximately 10 per cent swing towards Mr Watson.

The contest for second is still close with the Nationals’ Robbie Sutton a chance to take second.

UPDATE 2:00pm

Albany voters have taken advantage of the pre-polling period this election with as many as one in three having already performed their democratic duty before today’s official poll.

The early voting has meant turnout today at the traditional polling booths has been much lower than previous elections.

Despite the lower Saturday morning turnout candidates from most parties have expressed confidence based on feedback they had received during pre-polling and again this morning at the booths.

Incumbent Albany MLA Peter Watson said with at least 25 per cent of the vote already done it was always going to be quieter today.

“It’s been pretty quiet at most of the booths, Lockyer was busy earlier but the rest have been pretty slow,” he said.

Nationals’ candidate Robbie Sutton who is running in his second State election contest compared the campaign to a marathon.

“It’s like the New York Marathon, long, hard and tiresome,” he said.

“I think we have done OK, we have done all we can and now it is up to the people of Albany.”

Liberal party candidate Greg Stocks said he had been overwhelmed with the support he had received throughout the election campaign.

“We’re obviously not the incumbent so we’ve had to go longer and harder and I think we have put together a good campaign.

The Greens’ David Rastrick said he was encouraged by how many people were taking the how-to-vote-cards and a “good proportion of people will vote Green”.

Mr Rastrick said the Greens’ campaign had been focussed primarily on getting their Upper House candidate in the South West region Diane Evers elected to parliament.

“If we get a Lower House seat too then that is a bonus and we certainly hope to improve the percentage of Greens votes,” he said.