Tom le triomphante; French claims victory in Moore in shock victory for Labor

Tom French has made history for Labor, winning the seat of Moore — which the party has not done since 1987 — in a stunning upset that ends decades of Liberal reign in the northern Perth electorate. At 9.45pm, with 47.1 per cent of the vote counted, there was a projected 4.5 per cent swing towards Labor in Moore. Mr French secured 32.7 per cent of first preferences, ahead of Liberal Vince Connelly at 30.3 per cent, Greens candidate Scott McCarthy at 11.6 per cent, and independent Ian Goodenough with 9.8 per cent. Based on current preference flows, Mr French was projected to lead the two-party preferred basis with 53.5 per cent, compared to Mr Connelly’s 46.5 per cent, handing Labor the seat for the first time in decades. Heading into the election, with a margin of just 0.9 per cent — the slimmest in WA — Moore shaped up to be one of the most important battlegrounds in the country. However, several media outlets had already called the election before any results from Moore had begun to come through. “It’s still too close to call, but it’s looking pretty good,” Mr French told his loyal team at the Labor Moore after-party, shortly after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese delivered his victory speech. By 9.30pm Mr French had claimed victory, and thanked his campaign staff. Mr French, a qualified electrician and lawyer, was contesting the seat for a second time after securing 49.3 per cent of the two-party-preferred vote in 2022, representing an 11 per cent swing towards Labor. Mr French said he was extremely pleased with how his second campaign went and thanked his team. “We ran the biggest campaign in Moore for over 30 years, had a huge amount of volunteer support and the reception was really positive everywhere we went,” Mr French said. “People really appreciated making the effort to engage one-on-one.” The contest was further complicated by the presence of two prominent Liberal figures: Mr Connelly, the former Stirling MP, and Mr Goodenough, who had held Moore for the Liberals since 2013 but lost party preselection and chose to run as an independent. A complex flow of preferences was expected to decide the result, meaning a final outcome could have taken days; however, Labor’s strong early lead quickly made Tom French’s victory clear. Moore has long been a Liberal stronghold, held by the party in 15 of the past 20 elections since its inception in 1972. It was the only Perth seat retained by the Liberals in 2022. The electorate, located from Karrinyup to Currambine, has affluent coastal areas that generally lean Liberal, while the inner suburbs favour Labor. Speaking to The West Australian prior to the result, Mr Goodenough, who has been the Moore MP since 2013, reflected on his time in Parliament and what could be next. “It has been an incredible privilege to have represented our community in Federal Parliament for the past 12 years, and in local government for the 14 years preceding that,” Mr Goodenough said. “I will probably return to the private sector if unsuccessful — working in the area of construction or property development.” Mr Connelly, the former MP for Stirling before the seat was abolished, was controversially chosen as the Liberal candidate over Mr Goodenough, despite an unsuccessful bid for Cowan in 2022. Regardless of the outcome, Mr Connelly said he was proud to be part of the democratic process. “As someone who has served in the Army, I deeply respect our freedoms, including the right to choose our leaders,” Mr Connelly said. “It is a privilege to participate in the democratic process, and I am proud to be standing as a candidate to serve in our Federal Parliament.”

Tom le triomphante; French claims victory in Moore in shock victory for Labor

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