The Greens have maintained their only lower house seat and added another senator despite a conservative tide sweeping the nation, leader Christine Milne says.
The Australian Greens' vote slumped three per cent nationally, with Senator Milne blaming Labor infighting, Tony Abbott's negative focus on the Greens' dealings with former ALP leader Julia Gillard, and the lack of a major debate about the environment during the campaign.
But she trumpeted the results in Victoria, dubbing it "Green heartland" after party deputy leader Adam Bandt kept his Melbourne seat and even earned a seven per cent swing to him despite predictions he would lose to Labor.
"The Greens said we would be judged at this election by whether or not we could hold our seats in the course of a conservative tide coming in across the country - and we have," she told reporters in Melbourne on Sunday.
"It's now really clear that Victoria is becoming Green heartland and that is so exciting."
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The party is likely to pick up another Senate seat in Victoria with the addition of Janet Rice, bringing the number of Greens senators to 10.
Greens senators Scott Ludlam in Western Australia and Sarah Hanson-Young in South Australia are on track to keep their seats, Senator Milne said.
Senator Milne acknowledged the drop in the Green vote but says the departure of former party leader Bob Brown did not explain it.
"I think we did really well to hold the vote to where it is," she said.
Senator Milne says the party will share the balance of power in the new Senate after July, putting up a strong fight against Mr Abbott's "harsh" policies against people and the environment.
She says voters stopped short of giving Mr Abbott total control of the entire parliament and the composition of the new Senate will be a real test of his negotiating skills.
"I don't think people worked out just what a mix there'll be in the Senate," she said.
"Now Tony Abbott's going to have to negotiate with an extraordinary array of people whose policies nobody's got any idea about."
Senator Milne says it is ironic Mr Abbott spent three years slamming Labor for working with the cross-bench in the House of Representatives because he now faces a similar predicament.
