Henderson re-elected to the Senate

VICTORIAN Liberal Senator Sarah Henderson has had a win despite her party’s loss at the federal election, retaining her place in Parliament’s upper house.

Senator Henderson had the top spot on the Liberals’ Senate ticket in Victoria and was thus considered very likely to hold her seat.

According to the vote count on the Australian Electoral Commission website as of late Sunday, the Victorian Liberals suffered a 3 per cent swing against them at the May 21 election but had still received 971,042 votes (or 32.83 per cent), enough to lock in provisional Senate seats for both Senator Henderson and number two on the ticket Bridget McKenzie from the Nationals.

Labor has a provisional quota on two seats, which will go to Linda White and Jana Stewart; Lidia Thorpe is very close to securing the first quota for the Greens; and United Australia Party’s Ralph Babet is presently in the lead for the sixth and final Victorian seat being contested.

The election was the first time Senator Henderson had faced the voters since she filled a casual vacancy in late 2019 left by departing senator Mitch Fifield.

She said she was “honoured and humbled” to have won.

“As a regional senator based in Geelong, I will continue to give it my all as a representative of some 6.6 million Victorians.

“I greatly respect the democratic will of the Australian people. I congratulate Anthony Albanese on becoming the 31st Prime Minister of Australia and wish him and his Labor team well.

“Of course, the election result has been a very difficult one for the Liberal Party. We have lost a number of exceptional Liberal members of parliament including in Victoria.

“I wish to acknowledge, in particular, the leadership of Scott Morrison and Josh Frydenberg.

“Since 1945, no government has faced a greater peacetime challenge. I believe history will judge the achievements of our government well. There is much about which to be proud, which will form the basis of the rebuild of the Liberal Party, alongside the lessons of our defeat.”

Senator Henderson praised the efforts of the unsuccessful Liberal candidates in the electorates of Corangamite, Corio, Ballarat, Bendigo and Gorton that she worked with as “patron senator” and congratulated the Labor MPs in those seats for their re-election.