The first federal election exit poll has projected Labor will tonight win government and Bill Shorten will be elected Australia's next prime minister.
The Nine Network/Galaxy exit poll found Labor ahead of the Coalition 52 to 48 per cent on a two party preferred basis nationwide, as 16 million Australians cast their votes.
The poll surveyed 33 electorates across six states and found a swing to the ALP in every state, ranging from 1.1 per cent in Queensland, 3.2 per cent in Victoria and 2.5 per cent in New South Wales.
Reason to be confident: Bill Shorten and his wife Chloe voted at a polling station in Melbourne's Moonee Ponds today
A tight election result had been widely expected, with both Labor and Coalition strategists on edge with polls now closed in the eastern states.
NEW SOUTH WALES: 2.5 per cent
That could see Labor pick up the seats of Gilmore, Robertson, Banks and Page
VICTORIA: 3.2 per cent
That would see the Liberal Party lose the seat of Chisholm and La Trobe in Melbourne and fail to keep Dunkley and Corangamite, which are notionally Labor following redistributions
QUEENSLAND: 1.1 per cent
That would put the National Party seats of Capricornia and Flynn in danger and give Labor a strong chance of taking the Liberal-held seat of Forde
The Coalition's primary vote has sunk three per cent since the 2016 election while Labor's has surged by the same margin.
The major parties will need 76 seats to win a parliamentary majority in an expanded 151-seat House of Representatives.
Labor goes into the election notionally holding 72 seats, following redistributions, compared with 73 for the Coalition.
The projected swing would see the Coalition potentially lose 13 seats, including four in NSW and Victoria and three in Queensland.
The exit poll of 3000 voters found that health and Medicare were the main issues that influenced their voting decision, followed by cost of living and climate change.
The exit poll came as Scott Morrison refused to say whether he will carry on as Liberal Leader should he lose the election.
The Prime Minister addressed the media after kissing his wife Jenny as they cast their ballots in his electorate of Cook, in southern Sydney.
Far from the confidence Bill Shorten showed this morning, Mr Morrison shied away from predicting the result, saying: 'I make no assumptions about tonight.'
He then refused to comment on whether he would continue as Liberal leader as he stares down the barrel of defeat.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison kissed his wife Jenny after the pair cast their votes at Lilli Pilli Public School in Cook, Sydney
Prime Minister Scott Morrison, left, hugs his wife Jenny after casting his ballot in the federal election in Sydney
'As I have said when this question has been put to me before, this election is not about my future. It is about your future. It is about the people of Australia's future,' he said.
'It is about their aspirations, their ambitions. It is not about my aspirations or Bill Shorten's ambition, it is about the Australian people's aspiration and that is what I have focused on.'
Revealing that he voted for himself, he joked: 'I think you can guess how I voted today because I hear the local member is pretty good.'
Mr Morrison thanked supporters and said he would not like to predict the result, adding: 'I make no assumptions about tonight.
'I respect this process. It is dear to my heart, the democracy of our country. I am making no presumptions. I don't take anyone's support in this country for granted.'
Mr Shorten this morning said he is so confident of winning the election that he is already planning what he would do on his first day in power.
After casting his vote in Moonee Ponds, Victoria and awkwardly eating a democracy sausage, the Labor leader gave a short speech outlining his priorities for government.
After casting his vote in Moonee Ponds, Victoria and awkwardly eating a democracy sausage, the Labor leader gave a short speech outlining his priorities for government
Bill Shorten kisses a voter's baby in Melbourne before hugging an elderly voter in the line to cast a ballot
Prime Minister Scott Morrison and wife Jenny are seen with the Liberal candidate for Braddon, Gavin Pearce (rear second right) and a voter with a young child
The Democracy Sausage has quickly become a staple at schools and church halls around the country during elections, and today's federal election was gearing up to be the biggest snag day yet
With millions of voters flocking to polling booths from early on Saturday, some were left without a sausage in hand after they'd voted for their party of choice - but these voters in Brunswick had no shortage of sizzles
Standing alongside his popular wife Chloe, he declared that his first move would be to make a law raising pay for shift-workers at nights and weekends.
The 52-year-old said: 'In the event that the people of Australia voted for action on climate change, we will be ready to hit the ground from tomorrow. We'll be ready to start straight away and we will start straight away.
'My first cabinet meeting, the first order of business, we will put a submission to the independent umpire to get the wages moving again for millions of our fellow Australians.
'My first legislation will be to reverse the cuts to penalty rates.'
Mr Shorten also explained that tackling climate change is another priority, saying: 'We will convene the
