Liberals struggle to hold power in Tasmania as minor parties surge at election

The leader of the Tasmanian Liberals, Jeremy Rockliff, said his party had won most seats ‘by a large margin’. Photograph: Rob Blakers/AAP

The Liberal party faces having to negotiate with an expanded crossbench to hang on to power in Tasmania after winning the biggest share of the vote in the state election, but falling short of a majority of seats in parliament.

By late on Saturday, the Liberals, led by premier Jeremy Rockliff, were leading the poll with nearly 36.9% of the vote, but had suffered a 12% swing against it since the last poll three years ago.