Penny Wong, Labor's leader in the Senate, is sounding very despondent on ABC News, saying the party "thought they'd be in a different place right now".

"But we've still got a few seats we want to look at and we've got a lot more votes to come in."

Penny Wong is shadow minister for foreign affairs. She was set to become foreign minister if Labor won, the first openly gay, Asian woman to hold that post.

At the Liberals' event in Sydney, the champagne glasses are set out. Not yet filled, mind.

Our reporter Gary Nunn overhears: "We thought we’d lost and we could actually win!"

Independent candidate Zali Steggall says her predecessor Tony Abbott "has been a dedicated and long-serving local member". Lots of applause for that in the room.

"Nobody can doubt his community spirit, his work ethic, and his contribution to this community. And I wish him well."

But she adds: "Warringah, we have a new beginning."

Kate Rose is at Labor's main election evening party in Essendon, Victoria.

"Despite early cheers at news of Tony Abbott's ignominious defeat, the mood is definitely tempered," she says.

"I will be a climate leader for you," says new independent MP for Warringah, Zali Steggall.

"I will keep the new government to account and make sure we taken action on climate change.

"I will push for real action so our children and generations to come can enjoy the climate and our beautiful beaches and beautiful country the way we enjoy it."

She's also calling for respect of people regardless of their views, gender or sexual preferences and calls for collaboration in government.

This will be music to the ears of the grassroots campaign that has backed her, which had promoted her candidacy based on the idea that Tony Abbott - who was an opponent of legalising same-sex marriage and has been largely dismissive of the climate change movement - had had his time.

Zali Steggall, the former Olympian who has ousted Tony Abbott in Warringah, is addressing her supporters in north Sydney. There are deafening chants of "Zali" in the room.

"What a day," she tells them. "It is so humbling."

She starts by thanking her supporters for their election day work - and apologising for a croaky voice.

"Warringah has voted for the future. And you've all shown that when communities want change they make it happen. This is a win for moderates with a heart."

Jay Savage
BBC News Online Australia Editor

The story isn't uniform in the east, but one thing appears clear: Labor is not doing as well as many people had predicted.

Labor figures certainly appear concerned in interviews on local networks. Their government counterparts, meanwhile, are upbeat about defying months of opinion polling which has pointed to an opposition victory.

Before the election, most talk centred on Queensland and Victoria as the states where the result may be decided.

But with no clear majority evident at this point, eyes are now on a place that has received comparatively little attention: Western Australia.

Voting closed in the west less than an hour ago, meaning as its results begin to emerge, so too may the verdict nationally.

Kate Rose
Melbourne

The Labor faithful are starting to gather at their election night event in Essendon, Victoria. Adam Wieladek, Felicity Strong and Gillian Strong spent the day handing out how-to-vote cards in Dunkley and Maribyrnong (advising people how to order their preference votes to get a Labor win) and are now hoping it paid off.

Image source, Reuters

Barnaby Joyce, the former deputy prime minister, has comfortably retained his rural seat of New England in New South Wales.

He had been on a large margin for the National party, the junior partner of the Coalition.

However, analysts had speculated whether there might be voter backlash to the MP's personal scandals last year - among them an affair with a former staffer.

• The scandal that unseated Australia's deputy PM

Mr Joyce thanked voters who he said cared about "their power prices" and other cost-of-living issues.

He referred to other seats in Queensland, which are leaning towards conservative victories.

"There is a big lesson for the Labor Party," he said from his victory party.

"When they decide their lives in Woolloomooloo [Sydney], Queensland will leave you alone."

Tony Abbott, once prime minster, says he's not going to let "one bad day spoil 25 good years".

The BBC's Gary Nunn is at a Liberal party event in Sydney and sends this picture of the cheers as Abbott said there was every chance the coalition has won.

"The good news is that there is every chance the Liberal National Coalition have won this election," says Tony Abbott.

He says he always knew it was going to be tough to hang on to the seat he's held since 1994, but that he had decided early: "If I had to lose, I'd rather be a loser than a quitter."

He congratulates his rival, independent candidate Zali Steggall, but there are some boos from the crowd at that.

Tony Abbott is speaking at his party's event in Warringah and appears to be about to concede defeat.

He says there is good news but "yes there is a little bit of bad news. But the good news is more important than the bad news".

Tim McDonald
BBC News, Brisbane

As immigration minister, Dutton is a key architect of Australia's hard line stance in border protection and refugees, which has been criticised by human rights groups. He also challenged the former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull for the top job in August last year, but lost a vote.

Dutton then lost another vote to Scott Morrison after Turnbull decided not to contest a second round. Earlier in the campaign, he was forced to apologise for suggesting France, whose leg was amputated after a car accident, was using her disability as an excuse for not moving into the Dickson electorate.

Today, he accused activist group GetUp and Labor of an unprecedented personal attack, but suggested it might backfire, with aggressive campaign tactics pushing voters into his camp.

Tim McDonald
BBC News, Brisbane

The mood is buoyant at the campaign headquarters of the Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, who looks set to retain his seat in Dickson, in Brisbane's North.

Labor had hoped to claim a high-profile scalp in the seat, fielding Ali France as a candidate in an electorate thought to be on a knife-edge. However, it appears Mr Dutton might win by a bigger margin than he did in 2016.

Image source, EPA

Image source, Getty Images

Charismatic independent candidate Zali Steggall has booted Mr Abbott out of parliament, Australian media say.

Ms Steggall is a lawyer and former Olympian alpine skier. Her challenge against the former PM attracted national attention in the election campaign.

She's succeeded in harnessing a grassroots revolt in the affluent seat, driven by climate change concerns.

TV vision showed her supporters over the moon at the victory,

Meanwhile the mood's much less buoyant in Mr Abbott's quarters, where press have not been allowed in.

Mr Abbott had held the seat since 1994.

Cocos (Keeling) Islands is an Australian territory in the middle of the Indian Ocean and the last place where polls close on election day. That's happening shortly.

Despite being closer to Indonesia than the mainland, the archipelago is part of the Northern Territory electorate of Lingiari - which is held by Labor's Warren Snowdon with a margin of 8.2%.

Local Di Evans moved to the West Island from Dongara in Western Australia eight years ago and told the BBC earlier she "doesn't feel isolated". She never expected candidates to travel there during the campaign due to the significant cost.

The Islands run 3.5 hours behind the time in Canberra. She says she has a friend who always waits until the final minute to cast his vote so he can have the distinction of being the last voter.

• Flip-flop tide engulfs Cocos Islands

Jay Savage
BBC News Online Australia Editor

Melbourne is the Greens' only seat in the House of Representatives, and it's almost certainly been retained by popular local MP Adam Bandt.

The minor party has been targeting other seats in progressive inner Melbourne, but early indications do not show significant gains there.

The Greens' vote is always stronger in the Senate, however. Minor parties often gain more support there, as voters seek to ensure a check on power.

"There are very strange results coming through tonight," Greens leader Richard Di Natale tells the ABC.

Tim McDonald has been travelling around Queensland for the BBC this week, talking to voters in small towns about their concerns and wishes.

Queensland has 12 marginal seats - some held by less than one percent of the vote.

You can read his piece here on the weird, wild world of Queensland politics.

He's shared his views as results come in.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation is tallying the results, external as 60 seats for the Liberal National Coalition, 57 for Labor, with other parties on five seats.

That's far from the Labor sweep to victory many had predicted. That person who put the A$1m bet on a Bill Shorten victory may be getting nervous around now.

We knew this was going to be a tight race but there really is no indication now of which way this will go - whether Labor will manage to snatch government from the Liberal-National coalition. Just under a quarter of votes have been counted. Analysts say the number of pre-poll votes cast this time - in the three weeks up to the election - will slow down the count.