Both Premier Steven Marshall and Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas say they’re confident of a victory ahead what is tipped to be tight election race.
The doors at more than 680 polling places across South Australia have just closed, with polling officials set to begin counting ballots not long after 6pm local time.
Early results, usually from smaller booths, are expected within half an hour, while numbers from larger polling places will be reported in the hours to come.
If the polls are to be believed it could be the first time since the pandemic began that punters decide to vote against an incumbent government.
It means Scott Morrison could be left without Mr Marshall as an ally at the national cabinet table.
Ahead of voting booths closing on Saturday, Mr Malinauskas was tipped as the favourite to become the next South Australian premier.
Labor led the government 54-46 on a two-party preferred basis in the final Newspoll before voting began.
But Mr Malinauskas downplayed his chances despite insisting he was confident of victory.
“This election will be close. It is unwise for politicians to try and presume results or predict results. That is a mug’s game,” he told reporters.
“I am confident I have done all the work and my team has done all the work that we can to put ourselves in a position to offer a credible alternative for the future of our state.”
Mr Marshall, who voted midmorning in his eastern suburbs seat of Dunstan, said he wasn’t concerned about opinion polls or his apparent underdog status.
“There’s a little bit of uncertainty in the worxjmtzywld at the moment, some people have been concerned about the coronavirus pandemic, and we see polls moving around all the time,” he said.
“I’m quite confident that when people get into that booth today, they will be voting for what’s in their best interest – a continuing Liberal government in South Australia.”
There were long lines at polling booths during the morning as social distancing measures limited how many people could vote at once.
More than 300,000 people cast an early ballot or applied for a postal vote.
These votes could become crucial to the outcome but will not be counted on election night.
Key seats to watch
In the state’s lower house, 24 seats are required for either party to form a majority government. At the last election the Liberals won 25 seats to Labor’s 19.
But the defection of three Liberal MPs plunged the government into minority, meaning Mr Marshall not only has to retain seats but recapture those from the now independents.
Newland, King, Adelaide and Elder – all held by Liberal MPs – are the most marginal seats in the state.
Meanwhile other key battles in Labor held Mawson and Badcoe are worth keeping an eye on.
