Steven Marshall's retirement means by-election in marginal seat
Former South Australian Premier Steven Marshall is set to retire from politics after more than a decade in state parliament. The former Liberal leader's exit means voters in the ultra-marginal seat of Dunstan will soon be going back to the polls in a crucial by-election test for Opposition Leader David Speirs.
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TVTranscript
00:00 Well, good morning. One last press conference.
00:05 Premier press conferences were a hallmark of the COVID era, and the last state leader
00:10 of that time still in Parliament, Stephen Marshall, has held his last one. But Mr Marshall
00:16 says there was more to his one term in office than the pandemic.
00:20 Obviously getting through COVID was a massive milestone, but I think in general the economic
00:26 transformation of the state is what I want to be remembered for.
00:30 The former Liberal leader said he'd stick around until the next election,
00:34 but now says it's time for change, and also a good time for a by-election in the state's
00:40 most marginal seat, won by the Liberals by just half a percent in 2022.
00:46 I really think it's not good when somebody's Premier and then they stick around after.
00:50 He's got a life and he can enjoy it doing something else than politics.
00:54 Mr Marshall says it'll be a referendum on Labor, and its election promise to fix the ramping crisis.
01:01 It was on every Stobie poll. I mean apart from those ones that had me with the rat's
01:04 body. But apart from those Stobie polls, all the other Stobie polls basically had
01:09 Peter Malastris was going to fix ramping. Well he hasn't done that.
01:13 We're the only party with a plan for health in our state.
01:16 For the government and opposition, the Dunstan by-election will be a critical test.
01:21 Questions could be raised about David Spears' leadership if the Liberals lose.
01:25 And if there's a sizeable swing against Labor in a seat it came so close to winning just two years
01:31 ago, nervousness could quickly build in government ranks.
01:35 This is a hard seat for us to win. There's no doubt about that.
01:38 We are the underdogs in this contest.
01:41 The Liberal Party have caused the by-election, presumably because they think they're in front.
01:44 And no government has won a by-election off the opposition in South Australia
01:50 since the state of the Northern Territory.
01:52 Pre-selections are yet to be held but former Liberal staffer Anna Fenizio is a frontrunner.
01:57 Just a day before his announcement, Stephen Marshall posted a coffee catch-up with her
02:02 to social media. While Labor's expected to run Cressida O'Hanlon,
02:06 who came close to taking the seat in 2022.
02:10 Thank you very much.
02:12 [BLANK_AUDIO]