Wannon victor Dan Tehan playing leadership cards close to chest

In what was a tumultuous election for the Liberal Party, Wannon MP Dan Tehan has managed to make it through and will hold onto his seat for a sixth term.

Saturday’s federal election was tipped as a tight race between the Liberal incumbent and Independent challenger Alex Dyson, but in the end Tehan won, with 53.58 percent of the two-candidate vote while Dyson received 46.42 percent. 

Dyson, running in Wannon for the third time, was able to attract 30,356 first preference votes, which was a 13.32 percent increase on 2022. 

According to the Australian Electoral Commission, Tehan’s victory represented a modest swing of 0.08 percent, however compared to how many of his Liberal colleagues fared on Saturday, it was a strong result. 

The loss of Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s Brisbane seat of Dickson has cleared the way for a new Liberal leader, and Tehan’s name has been tossed around, alongside Sussan Ley, Andrew Hastie and Angus Taylor.

The party won’t select a new leader until all federal electorates have been declared. 

"I haven't had any time to think about the future," Tehan told the ABC during the election coverage.

"You need time to consider, time to think and get an understanding of what has occurred."

Supporters of Tehan have backed him online as a good choice for the top spot, with one commenter saying Tehan “won convincingly despite a tough challenge” in Wannon.

“A good story to tell, it is time to run for the leadership Dan,” they wrote.

Dyson said in a statement he was “incredibly proud” of his campaign and everyone involved. 

“As to the question about whether or not I will run again, it’s too early to make a decision on that.”