Terrigal MP Sam Boughton claims Liberal Central Coast seat amid Labor NSW election landslide

Sam Boughton likes to call the people in his electorate ‘legends’ but he has just carved his own bit of political legend into history by being the first Labor candidate to win the NSW seat of Terrigal.

Despite needing a hefty swing of more than 12 per cent to claim the Central Coast seat off Liberal Adam Crouch, Mr Boughton, 31, appears set to take his spot in NSW parliament with a two-party preferred swing of over 13 per cent.

‘I could never have envisaged this happening,’ Mr Boughton, who works as a physiotherapist in aged care on the Central Coast, said.

‘I’m quite shocked.’

At a small but enthusiastic gathering of Labor faithful on Saturday night, Mr Boughton thanked those who helped him pull off the stunning win.

‘So many amazing people come together like this and rally behind me,’ he said. 

It’s not just the electoral map that Mr Boughton is shaking up.

With his striking good looks, Mr Boughton poses a severe challenge to the old saying that ‘politics is showbusiness for ugly people’.

A keen surfer, his Instagram page boasts majestic shots and video by professional photographer Dave Crowley showing Mr Boughton confidently riding through the middle of barrels and the turquoise waves breaking over his head. 

Unfortunately he had other water breaking over his head in the middle of March when a mains burst over his house, which hampered his campaigning for a day or two. 

Mr Boughton and his partner Katie live in the area and boast strong community ties, something he brought to the fore during his campaigning. 

‘I know this area like the back of my hand,’ Mr Boughton wrote on his campaign website.

‘I have spent years working as a physiotherapist where I have met a range of people from across the community.  

‘I have heard what is important to my community; good schools, adequately funded and staffed healthcare, and the protection of our unique environment.’

Mr Boughton (pictured with partner Katie) campaigned on his strong local ties to the area

 Leading up to Saturday’s poll, Mr Boughton posted numerous social media shots of himself with people he met on the hustings usually labelling them as ‘legends’.

‘Too many legends to fit in one post,’ he wrote on Friday.

Mr Boughton attended Terrigal, Holgate public schools along with Central Coast Adventist School before completing his education at the University of Newcastle. 

Labor gains in the South Coast and Kiama mean the ALP now holds every seat on the NSW South Coast and the Central Coast. 

 Terrigal has only been held by the Liberals since it was created in 2007.

The seat of Gosford had previously covered Terrigal and was held by the Liberals even as Labor held power at the state level.

Chris Hartcher was the long-serving Liberal MP for Gosford from 1988 until the change of name in 2007 and continued as the member for Terrigal from 2007 to 2015. 

After Mr Hartcher was revealed to have allegedly accepted a number of questionable campaign donations, he did not stand in the 2015 state election, which first elected Mr Crouch. 

Mr Boughton defeated Adam Crouch who had held the previously stronghold Liberal seat of Terrigal since 2015