Over the weekend, two by-elections were held in the Victorian state seats of Werribee and Prahan.
Both Melbourne elections come at a critical time as the rest of Australia is expected to take to the polls on or before 17 May.
Therefore all eyes are on the results that reflect more than state-specific issues.
Today votes will continue to be counted in Werribee with only a few hundred votes separating John Lister, Labor's candidate, who leads against Liberal candidate Steve Murphy.
Before the by-election, insiders tipped that Labor would win the typically labor-safe seat of Werribee which was vacated by the retirement of treasurer Tim Pallas who won the seat in 2022 with a 10.9% margin, winning 45% of the primary vote.
Whether or not the party can hold the seat, pressure will be placed on Victoria’s state Labor government to answer for the contentious results.
Premier Jacinta Allen said on Sunday, "By-elections are an opportunity for people to make sure their voice is being heard.”
Allen also addressed voters' concerns about feeling ‘unheard’ by the Labor government, reflected in the contest for the seat.
"It is absolutely clear from listening that we need to do more, that we must do more and we will do more."
When the counting was paused late Saturday evening, the major parties finished with less than 30% of the first preference vote.
Nine News reported that It will be at least five more days until the results of the Werribee byelection are known.
Issues at a Victorian Electoral Commission's (VEC) early voting centre were reported to have slowed down progress on the Werribee result.
Whereas in the city's eastern suburbs, the Greens have conceded defeat to the Liberals as the final votes are counted in the seat of Prahran.
Rachel Westaway has beaten Greens candidate Angelica Di Camillo with Victorian Greens leader Ellen Sandell conceding defeat.
"The results are incredibly close but unfortunately it's clear that the Greens will fall just short," Ms Sandell said.
The Prahran by-election was caused by the resignation of former Greens' MP Sam Hibbins, who had held the seat since 2014.
There was no Labor candidate for the Prahran by-election.
Related content