Australia govt finally wins majority after fierce election fight

Australia's ruling conservatives finally secured a parliamentary majority following a protracted election vote count, projections showed Monday. The incumbent Liberal/National coalition, which declared victory on Sunday after the Labor opposition conceded defeat eight days after national polls, secured 76 seats in the 150-seat lower House of Representatives, according to national broadcaster ABC. The ABC projections said the coalition secured two additional seats in Queensland, where just hundreds of votes divided the two major parties, in an election in which populist minor parties and independents won more representation in parliament.

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