It's more than 130 days since Australia's youngest government leader was swept into power in a landslide victory.
Northern Territory Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro set up the first wave of conservative rule in the top end of the Australian continent after years of Labor domination.
"A lot goes into unseating a government," the 40-year-old chief minister, who's currently the country's youngest state or territory leader, told AAP in an interview.
"We had a really clear plan for the territory, and what we took to the election was concise.
"It was the things that people talk to us about as being their most urgent priorities around crime, economy and, of course, our beautiful lifestyle."
On August 24, Ms Finocchiaro's Country Liberal Party defeated Labor after a turbulent eight years in government.
The CLP won 17 of the 25 seats and reduced their now Labor opposition to just four bush seats - the critical northern suburbs of Darwin swung on an orange wave; it was a landslide victory that was evident to those in the tally room from the moment the first ballot box was opened.
Following the COVID pandemic, the NT's economy had stalled and crime was dominating the headlines, while leadership spills and scandals were plaguing the incumbent party. Labor knew it would be a battle to retain government, but few expected its loss to be so great.
A 12-year veteran of the NT parliament, Ms Finocchiaro was patient in opposition. She was one of only two in her party to survive the 2016 elections, and for nearly a decade she had been slowly rebuilding the CLP alongside her nowDeputy Chief Minister Gerard Maley and Attorney-General Marie-Clare Boothby.
"What was most important to me was hitting the ground running," she said.
"So straight away, the police commissioner and the chief executive of the Department of Chief Minister were ready for a meeting with me the next morning, and that really kicked off our reform process, not only for the public service, but of course, making sure that our police knew that we had their back."
Within the first 100 days, her government had repealed many of Labor's justice reforms and increased police powers, which by Christmas resulted in record-breaking numbers of prisoners across the NT jail network.
"Change is hard for some people, but we're here to deliver it ... it's about trying to take people on the journey with you, whilst delivering as much change as soon as possible," she said.
"We're mindful of the fact that we've got police arresting more people than ever before in a correction system that's at breaking point," said Ms Finocchiaro.
Corrections Commissioner Matthew Varley this week revealed there were a record 2598 Territorians in prison, an increase of more than 300 since just before the election on August 24.
However, senior prison staff have given evidence that remand prisoners often spend longer than their sentence in jail or in some cases should never have been incarcerated at all.
Darwin Correctional Centre general manager David Gordon gave evidence in December at an inquest into a death in custody that the average prisoner in the NT is on remand for 70 days.
"At the top end of that, there were 314 prisoners that spent an average of 109 days on remand, and when they went to court, charges were withdrawn, dismissed, or time served," he told the coroner.
"So that indicates to me, for the majority of that time, they shouldn't have been in jail."
Crime statistics show since the election house break-ins have continued to climb across the NT - up from 223 in July 2024 to 258 in October - while commercial break-ins have declined by 24 per cent.
Meanwhile, the NT's domestic homicide rate skyrocketed in calendar 2024 with 11 Aboriginal women killed.
The NT's prison infrastructure has long been investigated by international and national watchdogs, with up to four prisoners crammed into single cells in 40-degree heat with no air conditioning across both Darwin and Alice Springs facilities.
However, as police continue their arrest mandate, prisons have spilled over into the police watch houses where cells with up to 16 mattresses on floors are being used to hold prisoners for weeks at a time.
Former NT Ombudsman Peter Shoyer wrote in his annual report that the "trajectory of prisoner numbers" will put further pressure on "ill-equipped police watch house facilities".
"We noted there has been minimal change to address our observations regarding flaws in the facilities' infrastructure, which severely limit their ability to meet minimum human rights standards," he wrote.
The government has acted swiftly to expand cell numbers, bringing back online the old Berrimah Jail, which was decommissioned more than a decade ago.
In addition, it has swept through legislative changes that include ram-raid laws, mandatory sentencing, a presumption against bail and lowering the age of criminal responsibility back to 10.
The latter repeal caused a widespread national outcry after NT Labor became the first jurisdiction in Australia to raise the age to 12 in 2022.
Immediately after the CLP reversal, police search and seizure powers were extended into NT primary schools at the bequest of principals, a move condemned by the National Children's Commissioner.
"I find it an extraordinary move to have to call police into primary schools and to treat 10-year-olds like adults," Anne Hollonds told AAP at the time.
She said it was the opposite of most developed countries that were not only closing youth detention centres but finding social solutions to poverty which is intrinsically linked with poverty.
In response to the criticism, Ms Finocchiaro said that's democracy.
"People have a right to say what they like ... I think what's most important is that I understand really clearly and so do my team that we have a job to do."
The CLP win caught the attention of the Queensland Liberal National Party opposition, which swiftly followed with an 'adult crime, adult time' election commitment to tackle youth lawlessness.
Within two months of the NT election, the state also dumped its long-term Labor government and turned blue, adding to the conservative reach stretching across the top of the mainland to the east coast.
Ms Finocchiaro, who says community safety is a clear priority for her government, spoke to the prime minister about a crime wave in Alice Springs when he visited in December.
And while law and order isn't typically a federal issue, federal Labor has previously weighed in, delivering a $250 million rescue package for Alice Springs in early 2023.
However, community and health groups say much of that initial funding is still to reach the frontline.
The federal election is due to be held by May 17 this year.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
Lifeline 13 11 14
