WA’s ‘sex symbol’ Premier has lost it again in a TikTok video that’s gone viral, giggling as he did when asked the now famous kebab question.
A TikTok video of Western Australia’s rock star-popular Premier losing it giggling went viral as people cast their votes in a state election widely expected to result in another landslide win for Labor.
In the clip, Mark McGowan stands next to the owner of the Spud Shed chain, Tony Galati, who is known for his trademark bushy eyebrows and bricklayer-style attire, referring to him as a “well-known fashion icon”.
Also in the shot is Labor’s candidate for Scarborough, Stuart Aubrey, who is trying to unseat one of only three Liberal women in the lower house, former party leader Liza Harvey.
“It’s fair to say it’s a mash made in heaven,” Mr McGowan says before laughing, saying “please don’t use that”.
It’s reminiscent of the giggling fit Mr McGowan had last year after a reporter asked about a man who was fined for stopping to eat a kebab while out for a run during lockdown.
POLLS TIP BLOODBATH FOR THE LIBERALS
Polls have pointed to a dire result for the Liberals, the worst tipping its lower house seats could be smashed from 13 to just two, although political analysts don’t believe the result will be quite that bad.
Newly minted Liberal leader Zak Kirkup shocked everyone by conceding the Liberals would be defeated weeks ago.
He also admits he may lose his seat of Dawesville, which he won in 2017 with a margin of only 0.8 per cent, and says that would spell the end of his political career after just one term.
If Mr Kirkup does lose Dawesville, it will be the first time a conservative leader has lost their seat in WA since 1933.
On Saturday when he cast his vote, Mr Kirkup reiterated previous comments it was “obviously always going to be very tough, tough election”, replying “probably not” when asked if this one was ever winnable for the Liberals.
“But what is at risk now is a Labor landslide majority and I think that would be a very big risk to the people of WA,” he told reporters.
Mr McGowan, who has repeatedly insisted he wouldn’t assume anything, said he was “more a beer sort of guy” when asked if he would celebrate a victory with a beer or champagne, but insisted polls were “notoriously inaccurate”.
Asked if he was feeling confident, he told reporters: “I’m confident we’ve put forward the plans and the policies that will take the state forward”.
LAST MOMENTS ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL:
After controversy over a spat on Friday night between Liberal and Labor volunteers over campaign posters in Joondalup — the most marginal seat in the state at just 0.03 per cent — Mr Kirkup was all class, righting a Labor sign that had blown over in the wind.
Mr McGowan went to a primary school in the seat of Hillarys with his parents Mary and Dennis, who recently drove from NSW to Perth in their caravan, and the Premier helped out frying democracy sausages, as did Mr Kirkup.
Hillarys is held by Liberal Peter Katsambanis with a margin of just 0.4 per cent.
Another seat considered at risk of falling to Labor is Mr Kirkup’s Dawesville electorate, which he won in 2017 with a margin of only 0.8 per cent.
Seats to watch in the WA election
It’s been a presidential-style campaign for Labor, with some posters featuring Mr McGowan alongside candidates and others by himself as the party capitalises on his huge popularity, which soared due to his handling of the pandemic.
FINAL PITCHES
Mr McGowan said it was “one of the most important elections, if not the most important election, in living memory”.
“It’s very important that Western Australia stays the course and sticks with the team that has kept our state safe and strong over the last four years,” he told reporters.
“We’ve obviously been through a very traumatic last year.”
While Mr McGowan has argued it’s too risky to change teams during the health crisis, the Liberals have tried to save the furniture, saying Labor seeks “total control”, which would be bad for democracy.
On Facebook, he again urged West Australians to vote Liberal locally, saying it “looks after your community first and keeps important checks and balances”.
HUGE EARLY VOTING TURNOUT
People were encouraged to vote early in a bid to reduce polling booth queues and maintain social distancing on election day, with more early voting centres opened than usual.
The WA Electoral Commission reported on Friday that more than 755,000 votes had already been cast, including postal votes, from an electoral roll of more than 1.7m.
Mr McGowan and his wife Sarah McGowan were among the early voters.
Polling booths closed at 6pm WST.
