Next poll ‘winnable’

Opposition Leader Mark McGowan claims the next State election is winnable and the Rockingham MLA, re-elected for a fifth term, wants to continue to lead the Labor Party.

Mr McGowan refused to blame Federal Labor for Saturday’s result, which resulted in a swing towards the government of 7.7 per cent and Labor struggling to hold 20 seats in the Lower House.

Four seats remain in doubt and, although political experts have given the seat of Kwinana to Labor, Roger Cook has yet to declare it a win and independent Carol Adams has refused to concede defeat.

Mr McGowan, who had a swing of 1.9 per cent towards him in his seat of Rockingham, said he took full responsibility for the election result.

“I take responsibility for the outcome and I’m not going to blame anyone else,” he said.

“I’m the leader, I said it was a State campaign, I was repetitive in saying that all the time that it was to be fought on State issues. I’m not going to blame anything or anyone else.”

Mr McGowan said he was proud of the campaign and said the key to being a good opposition was to put out a real agenda for the future.

“I didn’t want to be an opposition that just criticises and says what the government did wrong,” he said.

“I wanted to be an opposition that put out new ideas and I think we achieved that.”

Mr McGowan’s fate as Labor leader will be decided later this week when the party knows how many members will form its opposition.