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PAUL Toole will be comfortably returned as the Member for Bathurst, earning his second four-year term in State Parliament.
Mr Toole pulled well ahead of his rivals right from the start of counting of votes shortly after polls closed at 6pm and has maintained that lead as counting continues.
At 8pm, with about 28 per cent of the Bathurst vote counted, Mr Toole had secured 56.62 per cent of the primary vote, ahead of Country Labor’s Cassandra Coleman (30.34 per cent) and The Greens' Tracey Carpenter (9.55 per cent).
Meanwhile, Mike Baird looks will remain as premier despite a statewide swing against the Coalition.
ABC election analyst Antony Green said a “correction” was to be expected following the Coalition’s landslide victory in 2011 that saw Labor reduced to just 23 seats in the parliament.
At 8pm, the ABC’s election computers had the Coalition holding 52 seats in the new parliament, Labor 31, The Greens two, two independents and six still too close to call.
For full coverage of the election, grab a copy of Monday’s Western Advocate.
