Today NSW residents will decide who will be the next premier as they had to polling booths across the state.
Premier Dominic Perrottet and NSW Labor Leader Chris Minns are going head-to-head for the top spot, with today signifying the end of weeks of tireless campaigning for both leaders.
The polls will open at 8am and close at 6pm sharp. You can find your closest polling booth here.
News.com.au will be bringing you all the news from the NSW election live throughout the day. You can find the latest updates below.
Chris Minns and Dominic Perrottet are going head-to-head today.
Chris Minns in prime position to secure Labor’s return to power
NSW Labor leader Chris Minns is in a prime position to lead the ALP into power for the first time in 12 years, according to Newspoll data.
The latest information gathered by The Australian shows that Labor is on the cusp of claiming a majority vote.
Newspoll’s two-party-preferred result of 54.5-45.5 represents a 6.5 per cent swing against the Coalition since 2019, with Mr Minns set to claim up to 10 seats, enough to reach the 47 seats necessary to govern without the support of the crossbench.
The polling comes as both leaders set out across Sydney today, with Premier Dominic Perrottet launching a last-ditch effort to secure seven threatened Liberal seats: Willoughby, North Shore, Penrith, Holsworthy, East Hills, Oatley and Ryde.
If Mr Minns is elected, it will be the first time since Kevin Rudd’s election back in 2007 that Labor governments will control the Australian mainland, leaving Tasmania as the only Liberal power base until the Northern Territory election in August 2024.
Big changes coming to education if Labor wins
Chris Minns has revealed that education is one of the first things he plans to tackle if elected as NSW premier.
Speaking to news.com.au ahead of the election, Mr Minns and his wife Anna emphasised a need for change when it comes to teaching in the state, and the way the government works with and supports teachers.
“First thing we’ll change is the focus on teaching in NSW and building up the teaching profession, he said.
Chris Minns and his wife Anna told news.com.au that education will be a huge priority if Labor is elected. Picture: Sam Ruttyn
Mr Minns noted there had been a 30 per cent reduction in the number of school leavers choosing to study education at university, adding that if the government doesn’t start focusing on “building up the teaching profession” then the state is not going to “attract the best and brightest to become teachers”.
“We need to be in a position where we’re working with the people that we need to run public services in NSW, and teachers are a big, big important part of that,” he said.
Western Sydney could be the deciding factor in outcome of election
Voters from Western Sydney could be key to the NSW election result today.
Professor Andy Marks from Western Sydney University explained today that there are a number of important seats in play and that it was going to be a “tight contest”.
“Election time is our time to shine in Western Sydney, it seems,” Mr Marks told the ABC.
“It’s always a tight contest. This time round, it’s no different. There’s roughly about seven seats that are in play.
“So its common place to see politicians on every corner. You’ll notice that a lot of the big announcements have been made in Western Sydney, both major parties camped out there for a few weeks.”
The top three concerns across the state are cost of living, health care and housing affordability, an exclusive poll has found.
Perrottet reveals ‘biggest challenge’ facing NSW
The NSW Premier has said that the rising cost of living is going to be the “biggest challenge’ facing NSW residents over the next 12 months.
Speaking to news.com.au ahead of the election, Mr Perrottet and his wife, Helen, stated that while NSW is in a strong position as a state, there are “economic challenges in front of us”.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and his wife Helen say the rising cost of living will be the biggest challenge over the next 12 months. Picture: Toby Zerna/Office of NSW Premier.
In response, he said his party is trying to “help families budgets”, through things like Back to School vouchers, Active Kids vouchers and Creative Kids vouchers, to ensure families can continue to invest in their children.
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“We want to help with the cost of sport, the cost of swimming lessons and it’s all there. It’s all available on Service NSW,” Mr Perrottet said.
“That’s the real challenge, I think going forward, and it’s all tied to the challenging economic situation we’re in. But we’ll get through it and we’ve got the plan to do it.”