Nurse wins remote NT by-election, brings Labor to six seats in parliament - ABC News & Headlines – Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Yiwarr McGrath with Merrikiyawuy Ganambarr-Stubbs at his victory party. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

Labor's Yiwarr McGrath has won the Mulka by-election over independent candidate Andrew Blamey.

The by-election was triggered by the sudden resignation of Yiŋiya Guyula last month.

Labor now holds six seats in the 25-member legislative assembly, while the CLP holds 17.

A Yolŋu nurse who grew up in poverty on remote Elcho Island will enter Northern Territory parliament, after winning the by-election for the east Arnhem Land seat of Mulka.

Labor candidate Yiwarr McGrath will be the second-ever politician to represent Mulka, after the shock resignation of long-term independent Yiŋiya Guyula in August.

"I'm ready to represent my people," Mr McGrath said in Nhulunbuy tonight.

Yiwarr McGrath is running for Labor in Mulka. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

"Balanda [non-Indigenous] and Yolŋu, both.

"And this remoteness, it's a tough gig living in remote, take it from me.

"I grew up here in poverty, as an orphan child, with overcrowding, house to house, not knowing where the next meal is.

"So I'm going to come here to the parliament with real life experiences and influence policy, for my people and everyone else in this region."

The former NT Young Australian of the Year said he would advocate in parliament for "more housing, more health infrastructure, especially out in the bush".

"I'm not too naïve — it's going to be a lot of work ahead," he said.

"And I also understand that I won't change everything tomorrow, but I'm here to give it a crack … I'm here to fight."

Supporters of Labor's Yiwarr McGrath celebrate his victory in Nhulunbuy. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

The vast electorate takes in the town of Nhulunbuy, as well as large Yolŋu communities of Galiwin'ku, Milingimbi and Ramingining.

Before a redistribution and a name change, Labor safely held the seat of Nhulunbuy between 1980 and 2016, and Mr McGrath's win brings it back into the party's hands.

The win also means Labor will now have six seats in NT parliament, after an NT election drubbing in 2024 saw the party reduced to just four seats and kicked out of government.

The party also won back a seat at another by-election in Darwin earlier this year.

At the time of publication, Mr McGrath had won 77.5 per cent of the vote over the sole other challenger, independent candidate and Nhulunbuy resident, Andrew Blamey.

Independent Andrew Blamey was unsuccessful, losing the seat of Mulka to Labor. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

At the close of the night's count, Mr McGrath had won 1,865 votes, compared with 541 for Mr Blamey, with less than 200 postal and declaration votes still to be counted.

ABC's election analyst Casey Briggs estimates the overall turnout for the election will be below 40 per cent of all eligible voters.

In a statement, Opposition Leader Selena Uibo said Yiwarr was a proud dad to three daughters "and he wants young people across the region to have access to good education and employment opportunities that allow them to thrive and contribute to the community".

Yiwarr McGrath celebrates his win with Opposition Leader Selena Uibo. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

"Thank you to everyone who put their trust in Yiwarr and to the volunteers who gave their time to his campaign," she said.

"I also want to thank Yiŋiya Mark Guyula for his decade of service in Parliament and for his fierce advocacy for the people of Mulka.

"Yiwarr is proud to continue his legacy."

Yiŋiya Guyula resigned from NT parliament last month, triggering a by-election. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

Nhulunbuy's future once it loses its largest employer, Rio Tinto, has been the focus of the by-election.

Production at the mining giant's north-east Arnhem Land bauxite mine is set to end in 2029 — a second blow for Nhulunbuy after its alumina refinery shut in 2014.

Despite not running a candidate in the by-election, Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro has said the CLP is committed to the future of Nhulunbuy, which is also losing its major supermarket, Woolworths, next year.

At the Garma Festival in July, Mrs Finocchiaro announced the town's lease would be handed to the Rirratjingu clan after Rio Tinto's exit, and also called for greater fuel security in the region. 

Michael Abusson says future plans for Nhulunbuy should benefit everyone. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

Local man Michael Aubusson said the loss of the bauxite mine would be "a big change for the area so there needs to be a bit of a plan in place to make sure that everyone’s benefiting".

"I think there is a plan, I just think it needs to be probably communicated a bit better to the people living and then staying in the area after," he said.

Just south of Nhulunbuy in Yirrkala, Laynhapuy Homelands Aboriginal Corporation vice-chair Barayuwa Munuŋgurr said overcrowded homes remained a key issue in the region's Aboriginal communities.

Barayuwa Munuŋgurr says overcrowding is an issue in remote communities.  (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

"We need more houses, to get the wellness and wellbeing of our people, the same, because I feel that health comes first, with housing," he said.

"We have issues with diabetes, kidney failures, it's due to overcrowding and not enough housing."

Yirrkala resident Charles Yunupiŋu said he was living with his family in a home where he shared one room between five people.

"It is really frustrating for everyone, it's difficult for everyone to sleep," he said.

Charles Yunupiŋu says north-east Arnhem Land needs more skills training for young people.  (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

Mr Yunupiŋu said the region also needed more skills training for young people.

"We need people to jump on work — most people just walk around and do nothing, you know, it's a bit sad too actually," he said.

"We need to help people to build their future for the next generation."

Arian Pearson, a sound designer and studio engineer based in Yirrkala, said tourism should be a major part of the region's plan post-mining.

Arian Pearson says Yirrkala needs more space for tourists to park their vehicles. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

"We need to build infrastructure to enable people to come to these communities and to support the community economically," he said.

"The visitors that come here need somewhere to stay.

"There's an influx of people that come in — campers, caravaners — that need more space to be able to park their vehicles.

"Tourism is a major factor economically for the region, so putting that infrastructure in place is needed for people to enjoy it."

Meanwhile, Mr Pearson's partner Ruth Pearson said a lack of day care in Yirrkala was impacting her ability to work.

Ms Pearson said high staff turnover at the day care centre run by the East Arnhem Regional Council had led to several closures over the past five years.

Ruth Pearson says the local day care centre in Yirrkala has been closed since July and is not set to reopen until October. (ABC News: Dane Hirst)

She said the centre had been closed since July and was not set to reopen until October.

"I get paid for the hours that I work, so I've been missing out on hours," she said.

"Over 300 hours this year that I could not go to work because the day care centre has been closed, which is over $12,000 in wages that I could not earn.

"My husband has a massive family in this community and yes, we have a lot of family members that can help care for our kids, but they all work, they are all in jobs, so I need help during work hours."

Ms Pearson also said her household was paying $5,300 in rates to the council each year.

"We are not a high-income family, so for us these rates mean every year we don't go away for Christmas," she said.

"Every year, we save up, we save up, we save up and then comes the end of the year and we get the rates bill and those savings go into the rates bill."