The media concluded that the choice facing voters was in finding the lesser of two evils: the three major newspapers sold in New South Wales endorsed Debnam, though not without criticising his ineptitude on the campaign trail.

The result was widely perceived as a foregone conclusion, with opposition leader Peter Debnam conceding as much the week before the poll.

Opinion polls consistently put Labor ahead in terms of voting intention and preferred premier.

The Legislative Council, elected by proportional representation, operates as a house of review in the New South Wales parliament.

This result appears to put them in a favourable position, in which they can exercise the parliamentary balance of power, and potentially provide the Labor government with the necessary majority to get legislation through the upper chamber of Parliament.

The swings required for the opposing party to take each of the Assembly's 93 seats are often illustrated by means of a Mackerras pendulum.

In Macquarie Fields, high-profile Liberal candidate Nola Fraser achieved a 12% swing in two-party-preferred terms compared to the 2003 poll.

Local issues such as hospital scandals and the 2005 Macquarie Fields riots may have also contributed to the high Liberal vote.

Sitting MP David Barr lost to future Premier Mike Baird, who increased the Liberals' primary vote by 4.4%.

In the very safe Labor seat of Blacktown Liberal candidate Mark Spencer managed to gain a higher than average swing against incumbent Paul Gibson who then retired at the next election.

Tebbutt won the seat in a 2005 by-election after quitting the Legislative Council, and is a senior member of the party's left wing and has a strong personal following in the area.

The Liberals lost Pittwater to independent Alex McTaggart at a by-election called after the resignation of John Brogden.

Sitting Labor MP Bryce Gaudry chose to stand as an independent after being disendorsed by his party in the seat of Newcastle.

The Liberals' Craig Baumann added 8.7% to his party's primary vote in the seat to outpoll Labor, and narrowly defeat ALP candidate Jim Arneman.

The Labor member for Swansea, Milton Orkopoulos, resigned from parliament after being charged with a number of child-sex and drug offenses.

An expected backlash against the ALP materialised in the form of an 11.3% swing, with independent candidate Laurie Coghlan the main beneficiary.

The Liberals had disendorsed candidate Brenton Pavier after details emerged of a sex joke he had sent to friends via SMS.

Steven Chaytor (Macquarie Fields) and Milton Orkopoulos (Swansea), each arrested for violent crimes in late 2006, pulled out of the election.