Closest of margins in Warren-Blackwood electoral count, with Nationals contender Bevan Eatts ahead

Labor’s chances to win the Warren-Blackwood electorate have slowly evaporated in a neck-and-neck race between opposition parties.

At the time of going to press, Nationals WA candidate Bevan Eatts was leading the pack by just a nose.

Fellow Manjimup businessman Wade De Campo was fewer than 40 votes behind Mr Eatts for the Liberal Party in the first-preference count, but in the two-party preferred tally it is Mr Eatts versus Labor incumbent Jane Kelsbie.

The whole outcome looked to hinge on which of the two conservative parties edged ahead because they were relying on each other’s preferences to claim the seat.

That is despite Ms Kelsbie making up some lost ground as of yesterday morning, with the two-party preferred numbers split 48.34 per cent and 51.66 per cent between her and Mr Eatts.

The tight contest has again raised questions about the two opposition alliance partners fighting against each other and whether it is time to form a proper Coalition during the next four years.

The close election race also shone a light on shifting demographics in the Warren-Blackwood electorate.

As the Times reported last week, pre-polling booths in Manjimup and Margaret River told two very different stories.

Booming coastal population growth post-pandemic had shifted the conservative vote in the Liberals’ favour.

Mr De Campo said a 9 per cent swing to him at the cost of Labor and the Nationals was a source of pride.

“All I feel is gratitude to those who saw fit to support me,” he said.

“It shows that if you listen to your communities and then commit to projects that add significant value to them, you can swing a seat.”

However, he was highly critical of the conduct of the election and concerned about what he saw as a high number of informal votes.

Mr Eatts told the Times he wasn’t taking the prospect of victory for granted.

“It would be an incredible honour to represent Warren-Blackwood in State Parliament, and I’ll use that opportunity to fight for local projects that truly make a difference,” he said.

He also backed party leader Shane Love’s call for a bipartisan Parliamentary inquiry into the conduct of the election.

Ms Kelsbie did not respond to a request for comment.