NATIONALS incumbent Andrew Gee has romped home in the seat of Orange with what he believes could be a swing towards him.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
With 66 per cent of the vote counted as of Sunday morning, Mr Gee had claimed 65.3 per cent of the primary vote, followed by Labor candidate Bernard Fitzsimon on 23.5 per cent and Greens candidate Janelle Bicknell on 6.9 per cent.
Christian Democratic Party candidate John Gilbert and No Land Tax candidate Juan Fernandez had gained 2.6 per cent and 1.7 per cent of the vote respectively.
Mr Gee leads Mr Fitzsimon in the two-party preferred vote 71.9 per cent to 28.1 per cent.
The incumbent accounted for the highest number of primary votes in the booths counted on Saturday night.
At about 8.30pm with 35 per cent of the vote counted, Mr Gee said the results from a sufficient number of booths indicated a "very strong win".
He said he had not had the opportunity yet to calculate a swing, but believed it was in his favour.
"I think the results are better than four years ago, I think four years ago we got about 56 per cent of the primaries," he said.
"We have won, it would seem, every booth in the electorate, including some of the more difficult booths that we haven't won before, like Peak Hill, and the numbers at those booths are quite overwhelming," he said.
"It was very encouraging that Glenroi has kept the faith and I think from memory the numbers in Glenroi are better than they were."
He thanked voters for the faith they placed in him, as well as his family and friends, party members and volunteers, and his staff for their help during the campaign.
Mr Gee also thanked the other candidates.
"Campaigns are tiring and stressful for everyone and so I'd like to thank them for their campaigns and their contributions to the political debate," he said.
danielle.cetinski@fairfaxmedia.com.au