Grey battle could be 'bad news' for Liberals, but Tom Venning remains confidentTopic:Australian Federal Elections1h ago1 hours agoThu 8 May 2025 at 3:30amTom Venning succeeded Liberal MP Rowan Ramsey as party's candidate for the seat of Grey. (ABC News: Matt Roberts)In short:The AEC is conducting three-candidate-preferred counts in several seats across the country, including the Liberal stronghold of Grey in SA, where there is a tight race for second spot.ABC election analyst Antony Green said if an independent candidate overtook Labor, that would be "bad news" for Liberal candidate Tom Venning.What's next?Mr Venning remains confident of retaining the seat for the Liberals.abc.net.au/news/three-candidate-count-in-grey-mayo-after-federal-election/105266944Link copiedShareShare articleThe Liberals' "diabolical" performance in South Australia at Saturday's federal election could be on the verge of a turn for the worse, with the party potentially at risk of losing one of its two remaining seats in the state.Liberal candidate Tom Venning, who has succeeded outgoing MP Rowan Ramsey, had been expected to retain the previously safe and largely rural seat of Grey for his party, and is well ahead on a two-candidate-preferred count.Federal politics live updates: Get the latest on the post-election election landscapeLive results: Find out what's happening in your seat as counting continuesMr Venning remains confident he will win the seat, notwithstanding the fact that the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) two-candidate count is based on the presumption that his main challenge was likely to come from Labor candidate Karin Bolton, not independent Anita Kuss.Independent candidate Anita Kuss is in a two-way contest with Labor for second spot. (ABC North and West: Viki Ntafillis)The AEC is now conducting a three-candidate-preferred count because of the tight race for second spot, the outcome of which could impact preference flows."If Anita Kuss moves into second place there'll be very different preference flows," ABC election analyst Antony Green explained to ABC Radio Adelaide."There's a chance that she could catch and pass the Labor candidate and if she did do that, she would get strong flows of preferences from Labor and that would be bad news for Tom Venning trying to hold the seat."The commission is re-examining some of the ballot papers to just clarify whether that's the case."They're not recounting all the Liberal and Labor votes, or Anita Kuss's votes — they're looking at 20 per cent of votes for other candidates."Election fallout and analysis:How Peter Dutton's campaign flew off a cliffANALYSIS: The Coalition is split on nuclear after it failed to win votesAnthony Albanese suggests Greens responsible for their own fallWant even more? Here's where you can find all our 2025 federal election coverageCatch the latest interviews and in-depth coverage on ABC iview and ABC ListenThe Liberals suffered major setbacks in SA on Saturday, failing to either regain the seat of Boothby or retain the seat of Sturt.The outcome prompted stinging criticism from two of the state party's grandees — former senator Simon Birmingham, who labelled it "diabolical", and former foreign affairs minister Alexander Downer, who described the Liberals' federal campaign as "an absolute shambles".Ms Kuss said she would "wait until the AEC has completed their work of counting all votes before making any comment"."It is important to me to respect the process that underpins our democracy," she said.Mr Venning admitted he was nervous but said he remained confident about his prospects."I wouldn't be human if I wasn't nervous," he said."But to see the numbers coming through and the scenarios that need to take place, we are still confident we will hold Grey."While admitting to nervousness, Mr Venning remains confident of the Liberals' prospects in Grey. (ABC News: Arj Ganesan)There are currently 12 three-candidate counts being conducted across the country, and the Australian Electoral Commission's SA state manager Cameron Stokes told ABC Radio Adelaide they had become increasingly necessary."We've got about a dozen seats around the country at the moment that are in this scenario, and it's even more common now than it used to be, with the rise of independents and minor parties," he said."[The] three-party-preferred actually doesn't change the result — all it does is hopefully give us a bit of clarity to try and get there a bit quicker."We don't do any kind of projection around what the results might be, so we will get through the count as quickly as we can. We don't look at a result or a winner until the maths say it's actually impossible for it to go another way."A three-candidate-preferred count is also being conducted in the Adelaide Hills electorate of Mayo, but Rebekha Sharkie is expected to retain that seat."I look at my results in Mayo — I'm really humbled by the fact that on the three-party-preferred, from what's been published, I sit on 41 per cent with … the Liberals on around 29.7, and 29.1 for Labor," Ms Sharkie said."I'm very appreciative that my community has put me ahead."Posted 1h ago1 hours agoThu 8 May 2025 at 3:30amShare optionsCopy linkFacebookX (formerly Twitter)Top StoriesTwo men found guilty of murdering Indigenous schoolboy Cassius TurveyTopic:HomicidePhoto shows Cassius Turvey Forever 15'Children at the grown-ups' table': Liberal insiders reveal a catastrophic campaignTopic:ElectionsPhoto shows Backlit photo of a Dutton press conference, his silhouette centred in front of a microphone'Cooperative' Erin Patterson helped police find beef Wellington leftovers in bin, court hears LIVEPhoto shows A digital drawing of Erin Patterson wearing a pink shirtAustralia's best sports rights in the hands of a Soviet-born, former oil tycoonTopic:Media IndustryMacquarie Bank's dodgy trading may be 'tip of the iceberg' for industryTopic:BankingPhoto shows The exterior of a Macquarie Bank building, fit with the company's white circular ring logoRelated storiesSenior Liberal slams 'diabolical result' as Labor wins SA marginal seatsTopic:ElectionsPhoto shows Two women hold up signs that say 'I'm backing Claire' at Labor celebration after the federal electionAlexander Downer describes federal campaign as 'an absolute shambles'Topic:Australian Federal ElectionsPhoto shows Alexander Downer in a backyardGoodbye Adelaide, we hardly knew ye: Liberals locked out of capital city seats in SALAnalysis by Leah MacLennanPhoto shows Labor's Claire Clutterham with Peter Malinauskas.Related topicsAdelaideAustralian Federal ElectionsCedunaCleveEllistonPeterboroughPort AugustaPort PirieSAWhyallaTop StoriesTwo men found guilty of murdering Indigenous schoolboy Cassius TurveyTopic:HomicidePhoto shows Cassius Turvey Forever 15'Children at the grown-ups' table': Liberal insiders reveal a catastrophic campaignTopic:Elections'Cooperative' Erin Patterson helped police find beef Wellington leftovers in bin, court hears Topic:Law, Crime and JusticeAustralia's best sports rights in the hands of a Soviet-born, former oil tycoonTopic:Media IndustryMacquarie Bank's dodgy trading may be 'tip of the iceberg' for industryTopic:BankingJust InPremier's 'not a red cent more' claim re Hobart stadium funding under fireTopic:Explainer5m ago5 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 4:25amOld schoolhouse restoration transforms piece of history in Adelaide HillsTopic:History23m ago23 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 4:08amTruckies call for industry reform to attract more young drivers Topic:Road Transport Industry31m ago31 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 4:00amCounting for seat of Bean likely to drag on for days as AEC turns to postal votesTopic:Elections31m ago31 minutes agoThu 8 May 2025 at 4:00amMore Just InBack to top