JOHN Barilaro is just a matter of hours away from winning a second term in the mini-bellwether seat of Monaro, extending an all-but unassailable lead over his Labor rival Steve Whan.
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Mr Barilaro fronted an ecstatic crowd at the Queanbeyan Kangaroos Club at around 10pm to make an unofficial victory speech and thank his supporters, who chanted 'Bara! Bara!' as he walked into the room.
Stopping just short of declaring outright victory, Mr Barilaro said his position looked to be much stronger than when he first won the seat in 2011.
"Tonight's result is a tight result, and even though we're front and the early indication from pre-poll is that we'll go fine, I'm not going to declare yet. I'll allow that to happen over the next 24 or possibly 48 hours," he said.
"We're not arrogant, we understand there's more to be counted and there's a mathematical opportunity for Steve [Whan] to catch up.
"But I believe we're in a better position than 2011, and we're confident of where we're going to be tonight."
Currently 50 per cent of the Monaro vote has been counted, with Mr Barilaro not just maintaining his slender 2pc margin, but looking like he'll extend it slightly as counting continues.
Mr Barilaro thanked his team and said he'd run a grass roots campaign based upon family values.
"The good news is that Mike Baird is premier of New South Wales. Troy Grant is deputy premier. The Liberals/Nationals Government will continue to work over four years, making the right decisions so we can invest those dividends for what's right for everybody in this state," he told supporters.
Meanwhile, over at the Queanbeyan Leagues Club, Country Labor candidate Steve Whan made a subdued 'thank you' speech to supporters around 8.30pm, all but conceding the seat.
"It's too early to make a call, but it's not feeling at that fantastic at this stage," he said.