ELECTION FORECAST
21 March 2026
Updated 11 March 2026

South Australia
Election 2026

Seat-by-seat forecast using Monte Carlo simulation, demographic analysis, and multi-party preference flow modelling.

LABOR
38
seats (+9)
LIBERAL
3
seats (-11)
ONE NATION
3
seats (+3)
INDEPENDENTS
3
seats (-1)
47 seats modelled
10,000 Monte Carlo simulations
Multi-party preference flows
Updated 11 Mar 2026

Labor Supermajority

Our model predicts Labor will win 38 of 47 seats (81%), delivering Premier Peter Malinauskas a historic supermajority. The Liberals cling to just 3 seats (Flinders, Mount Gambier, and Schubert), while One Nation breaks through with 3 seats (Finniss, Hammond, and Mawson).

Current Polling

Primary Vote (Feb 2026 Polling)

Labor 35-44%
One Nation 19-28%
Liberal 14-20%
Greens 11-14%
Others/IND 6-7%

Sources: Roy Morgan, YouGov, Fox & Hedgehog (Feb 2026)

Two-Party Preferred (ALP vs LIB)

60%
Labor
40%
Liberal
17-point swing against Liberals vs 2022

The Two Contests

Metro Adelaide

34 seats

Labor 34

Complete sweep. Even traditionally Liberal seats like Bragg, Morialta, and Heysen fall to Labor. Not a single metro seat survives the swing.

Regional SA

13 seats

Labor 4
Liberal 3
One Nation 3
Independents 3

Fragmented opposition. One Nation wins Finniss, Hammond, and Mawson on protest vote. Liberals cling to Flinders, Mount Gambier, and Schubert. Independents hold Stuart, Narungga, MacKillop.

Seat-by-Seat Predictions

Metro Adelaide (34 seats)

Margins from Antony Green's post-redistribution pendulum (Dec 2025). 2PP: Labor-Liberal

Seat Current Holder Margin 2026 Prediction 2026 2PP Confidence
AdelaideLabor6.2%Labor hold64-36HIGH
BadcoeLabor14.8%Labor hold72-28HIGH
BlackLabor (by-elec)9.9%Labor hold67-33HIGH
BraggLiberal8.2%Labor gain53-47MED
CheltenhamLabor19.1%Labor hold77-23HIGH
ColtonLiberal4.8%Labor gain55-45MED
CroydonLabor24.8%Labor hold82-18HIGH
DavenportLabor3.4%Labor hold60-40HIGH
DunstanLabor (by-elec)0.8%Labor hold58-42HIGH
ElderLabor5.8%Labor hold63-37HIGH
ElizabethLabor12.4%Labor hold70-30HIGH
EnfieldLabor15.8%Labor hold73-27HIGH
FloreyLabor5.1%Labor hold63-37HIGH
GibsonLabor3.9%Labor hold61-39HIGH
HartleyLiberal3.6%Labor gain54-46MED
HeysenLiberal2.6%Labor gain54-46MED
Hurtle ValeLabor4.2%Labor hold62-38HIGH
KaurnaLabor6.9%Labor hold64-36HIGH
KingLabor10.5%Labor hold68-32HIGH
LeeLabor5.4%Labor hold63-37HIGH
LightLabor2.1%Labor hold59-41HIGH
MorialtaLiberal1.4%Labor gain56-44HIGH
MorphettLiberal4.5%Labor gain55-45MED
NewlandLabor1.8%Labor hold59-41HIGH
PlayfordLabor13.5%Labor hold71-29HIGH
Port AdelaideLabor12.4%Labor hold70-30HIGH
RamsayLabor14.9%Labor hold72-28HIGH
ReynellLabor6.4%Labor hold64-36HIGH
TaylorLabor9.2%Labor hold67-33HIGH
UnleyLiberal2.2%Labor gain57-43HIGH
WaiteLabor4.0%Labor hold61-39HIGH
West TorrensLabor18.8%Labor hold76-24HIGH
WrightLabor11.9%Labor hold69-31HIGH
TorrensLabor10.0%Labor hold67-33HIGH

Regional & Rural (13 seats)

Margins from Antony Green's post-redistribution pendulum (Dec 2025). 2CP shows actual final-two contest: Labor · Liberal · Independent

Seat Current Holder Margin 2026 Prediction 2026 2CP Confidence
ChaffeyLiberal17.2%Labor gain51-49LOW
FinnissLiberal6.7%ONP gain51-49LOW
FlindersLiberal20.3%Liberal hold52-48LOW
GilesLabor19.7%Labor hold70-30HIGH
HammondLiberal5.1%ONP gain55-45LOW
KavelIND (retiring)3.5%Labor gain54-46HIGH
MacKillopIND (was LIB)22.6%IND hold61-39HIGH
MawsonLabor8.6%ONP gain51-49LOW
Mount GambierVacant13.8%Liberal hold55-45MED
NarunggaIndependent8.1%IND hold58-42HIGH
NgadjuriLiberal3.2%Labor gain53-47HIGH
SchubertLiberal11.9%Liberal hold67-33HIGH
StuartIndependent14.1%IND hold64-36HIGH

Analysis

The Labor Landslide

This isn't a normal election. Labor is polling at 60% on two party preferred, a number not seen since the Liberals' 1979 landslide under David Tonkin. The Liberal Party has collapsed to historic lows, polling behind One Nation in most surveys. Premier Peter Malinauskas is on track for a supermajority of 38 seats, enough to pass legislation without crossbench support.

The question isn't whether Labor wins. It's whether anyone else survives.

One Nation Breaks Through

For the first time in South Australian history, One Nation is projected to win lower house seats. Our blended model (combining How-to-Vote card analysis with survey data) gives them Finniss (Fleurieu), Hammond (Murray Bridge), and Mawson (southern fringe).

The mechanics: Liberal HTVs explicitly preference ONP above Labor. In deep regional seats, the vast majority of Liberal preferences flow to ONP. Combined with a strong ONP primary vote, that's enough to beat Labor in the final two candidate count.

Hammond is their strongest prospect (61% confidence). Finniss is a true toss-up (51%), and Mawson is a longshot (35%). Chaffey, once projected for ONP, now leans Labor (65%) due to higher Green primary vote delivering ALP preferences.

The Liberal Wipeout

The Liberals are staring at their worst result in history. In 2022, they hit a then-record low of 16 seats. Our model projects just three: Flinders (Eyre Peninsula), Mount Gambier, and Schubert (Barossa).

Schubert is their safest seat. Leader Ashton Hurn survives thanks to the Barossa's unique demographics and strong personal vote. Flinders and Mount Gambier both benefit from One Nation splitting the conservative vote without reaching 2CP.

The loss of Finniss to One Nation stings. What was a traditional Liberal seat on the Fleurieu has swung hard to Pauline Hanson's party on protest vote.

Independents Hold the Line

The three crossbench independents are projected to survive. Geoff Brock in Stuart and Fraser Ellis in Narungga have personal votes strong enough to withstand any statewide swing. Nick McBride, who quit the Liberals for the crossbench, holds MacKillop comfortably.

Narungga is the only real question mark at 59% confidence. Ellis faces pressure from both Labor and One Nation, but his local profile should carry him through.

⚠️ Five Seats to Watch

Hammond
ONP vs ALP • 61% ONP

Murray Bridge. Liberal collapse hands it to ONP. Strong protest vote sentiment.

Mawson
ONP vs ALP • 35% ONP

Southern fringe. ALP and ONP neck-and-neck. Liberal prefs flow strongly to ONP.

Chaffey
ALP vs ONP • 65% ALP

Riverland. Stronger Green vote delivers enough ALP preferences to hold off ONP.

Finniss
ONP vs ALP • 51% ONP

Fleurieu Peninsula. True toss-up between ONP and ALP. Could go either way.

Narungga
IND vs ONP • 59% IND

Yorke Peninsula. Fraser Ellis defending against ONP surge on personal vote.

How We Built This

Built on booth-level results from 2022, geocoded to the new 2026 boundaries, and incorporating fresh polling from Fox & Hedgehog (n=904, February 2026).

Our preference flows use a blended model: combining actual How-to-Vote card directions with survey behavioural data. HTV compliance varies by region (40% metro, 65% deep regional). This gives us 87% LIB→ONP flow in rural seats versus 67% in Adelaide.

We ran 10,000 Monte Carlo simulations per seat to generate confidence levels. Our booth level redistribution matches Antony Green's expert pendulum on 74% of seats. See the full methodology.

Methodology

1. Polling Baseline

Aggregate state polling from Roy Morgan, YouGov, Newspoll, and Fox & Hedgehog (Feb 2026). Weight by recency and sample size. Current 2PP baseline: Labor 60-40.

2. Seat Classification

Each of 47 seats classified as Metro (34) or Regional/Rural (13) based on ABS geography. Different swing patterns applied to each category based on demographic composition.

3. Demographic Modelling

Census data (income, education, age, employment) used to predict One Nation and Independent vote share. Key finding: ONP vote is higher in lower income areas (r = -0.45 vs income) and regional location.

4. Multi-Party Preference Flows

Full preference distribution modelled for 5-way contests (ALP, LIB, ONP, GRN, IND). Based on 2022 actual flows + national ONP preference data. Key assumptions:

  • ONP → Liberal: 60% | Labor: 25% | Exhaust: 15%
  • Greens → Labor: 85% | Liberal: 5% | Exhaust: 10%
  • IND → varies by seat demographics

5. Monte Carlo Simulation

10,000 simulations run for each seat. Primary vote and preference flows randomised within polling uncertainty bands. Seat winner determined by final 2CP/2PP count in each simulation. Reported prediction is modal outcome.

Confidence levels: HIGH = wins in 80%+ of simulations | MED = 60-80% | LOW = <60%

6. Sensitivity Analysis

Model stress-tested against alternative ONP preference flow scenarios (40% to 70% to Liberal). Labor supermajority persists in all scenarios due to scale of primary vote collapse for Liberals.

🗺️ Booth-Level Redistribution Analysis

We geocoded 350 booths and mapped them to 2026 boundaries. See how our analysis compares to Antony Green.

View Deep Dive →
Model Updates

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Model Updates

11 March 2026 — Blended HTV + Survey Model

Incorporated Fox & Hedgehog polling (n=904) with How-to-Vote card analysis. New preference flow model uses regional HTV compliance weighting (40% metro, 65% deep regional). Result: ONP gains Finniss and Mawson; Chaffey flips to Labor; Schubert returns to Liberal hold.

10 March 2026 — Initial Release

Booth-level redistribution analysis with Monte Carlo simulation. Initial projection: ALP 40, LIB 2, ONP 2, IND 3.

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