South Australia's Record Election: 436 Candidates, Long Ballots

0:00In Sydney, it's March 3rd. Here's what is happening. Just 10 days until South Australia start early, boarding for the 2026 state election. The electoral commission released the final candidate list on Monday, showing a record 436 people running up from 200. 91 last time. That includes 388 for the 47 lower house seats and 48 for the 11 upper house spots. The candidate pull breaks down to 268 men, 1 in 64 women and 4 others. Voters in places like Hammond and Port Adelaide face the biggest ballots ever with 12 names each for the lower house. Other busy seats like Mount Gambier, Caval and Flanders have 11 pushing the average above 8 per seat way more choice than before. This flood of names could slow down results, especially in close races where preferences matter a lot. Experts warn some seats might not wrap up on election night because checking all those votes takes time. Seats like Flanders and Caval look especially tight with crowded fields.

1:02Right wing minor parties are behind most of the surge like one nation contesting every lower house seat and the Australian family party fielding. Several day family members across the state groups like Fargo for Australians are also jumping in with family ties. Meanwhile, the commission made a helpful change. They can now tally pre-pull and postal votes right on election night instead of waiting days. That should speed things up overall despite the longer ballots. The Daily News Now is presented by our sponsor, LinkedIn the description, a pillow that plays your podcasts, music or white noise privately, no ear buds required, S-O-L-I, solelypillow.com.