Basil Zempilas celebrated his victory in Churchlands in true Greek style with traditional dancing, following a nail-biting election night.
After a tense and closely contested count between Zempilas and Labor MP Christine Tonkin, the Liberal candidate emerged victorious, securing 52% of the primary vote, ahead of Tonkin’s 28%.
Footage shared by Zempilas’ wife, Amy, on Instagram shows the newly elected member thanking his supporters. With a crowd of cheerful Liberal supporters, Zempilas, dressed in a blue t-shirt, addressed the crowd alongside his wife and their daughter Ava, who had just celebrated her 14th birthday.
“Thank you, everybody, but firstly I apologise for such a late night. It’s taken a long time to get here, but hopefully, this is the news you’ve been waiting to hear,” Zempilas said to his supporters.
The election victory didn’t go without celebration. The Liberal candidate danced the night away with some spirited Greek dancing, a nod to his heritage, as traditional music played in the background. “A bit of Greek dancing to celebrate the win last night,” Amy wrote on Instagram, sharing the joyful moment.
Earlier in the night, Zempilas had closely followed the results on 7NEWS, appearing on the election night panel. As the vote count remained tight, he expressed relief when the result was finally called.
“I’m told that I’ve won,” Zempilas said at 10 pm. “I knew it was going to be close, I knew it was going to be tight. If a $1 million smear campaign had no effect, then what’s the point? I’ve withstood that and I’ve won the seat of Churchlands on a night when there was not a huge swing towards the Liberal party across the state.”
Zempilas, who has been considered a potential future leader of the Liberal Party, faced speculation over leadership changes following the Liberals’ broader poor showing in the election. However, he ruled out making any hasty decisions, saying that a full understanding of the election results was necessary before discussing leadership changes.
“This is not a time for anything rash. We need to fully digest this result before making any decisions,” Zempilas told reporters. “Today’s not the day for any decisions about anybody’s future.”
