WA state election 2025 LIVE: Basil Zempilas reckons he’s copped $1 million worth of flack as polls close

WAtoday has just visited the electorate of Jandakot, which is one of the hardest to read seats this election.

It was the seat of Labor MP Yaz Mubarakai who is now running in the new seat of Oakford after Jandakot’s new boundary cleaved off the fast-growing suburbs of Harrisdale, Piara Waters and Forrestdale.

In their place Jandakot now takes in Atwell and most of Leeming but it is still a very disjointed seat, being made up of several local governments and federal electorates.

It is notionally a Labor seat with an 18.4 per cent margin but both parties believe they can win it.
What makes it harder for Labor candidate Stephen Pratt and Liberal Nicole Robins to predict a result is that no party was able to hand out how to vote cards at the pre-poll centre at Cockburn Gateways where much of the electorate would have voted.

The shopping centre did not allow party volunteers to hand out cards in the shopping centre or stand by the shopping centre doors so the parties agreed to abandon that location altogether for the fortnight of pre-polling.

More than 15,000 people voted in Cockburn – one of the highest in the metro area.

Speaking from Atwell Primary School Pratt – a former staffer for Roger Cook and upper house MP – said it would be close.

“Everyone’s been very kind and friendly on both door knocking before today, and on the booth and on pre-poll but I think it’s going to be close,” he said.

Pratt said his commitments to improving access to sports for women at clubs around the electorate had been resonating.

At Leeming Primary School Robins said the vibe on the ground was positive.

“I’ve got a good feeling, but we’ll just have to wait and see. We’ll keep working hard til 6pm and keep trying to win every vote we can and see how it goes,” she said.

Robins said the biggest issues in the electorate were cost of living, housing and the hospital crisis.